


Lasso the Moon

by Scarlett_Lamour



Category: Red Dead Redemption (Video Games)
Genre: Anal Fingering, Anal Sex, Angst, Auto correct take the wheel, Blowjobs, Choking, Double Penetration in Two Holes, Drunk Sex, F/F, F/M, Fingering, Fix-It, Frottage, Gore, Happy Ending, Hitting, M/M, ModernOC, Multi, No Beta/We die as men, Public Sex, Rough Sex, TB? I don't know her, Threesome - F/F/M, Threesome - F/M/M, Vaginal Sex, Whump, Wish Fulfillment, it was all a dream, let Arthur say fuck, lots of smut, opposite of a slow burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-04-17
Updated: 2019-10-30
Packaged: 2020-01-15 15:40:08
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 13
Words: 61,565
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18501964
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Scarlett_Lamour/pseuds/Scarlett_Lamour
Summary: When Juniper wakes up in the middle of the snow, she greeted by two very familiar men. Determined to force a better fate on the Van der Linde gang, she's got a long story ahead of her.Clearly there will be spoilers for the entire game. I'm playing through the game for the billionth time as I write this out so I can get details correct which gives me an erratic updating schedule but I will try to post fairly often.





	1. Colter

 

 The ground was hard and ice cold beneath her, her warmth quickly seeping out of her and bleeding into the wet dirt. With only her thin pajamas on, she quickly started shivering against the brisk wind blowing snow onto her. Her eyes opened, squinting against the daggers of ice being blow into them. Around her it was all white and her mind reeled trying to understand what had happened.

   “Ma’am?” A very professional voice grabbed her attention and a bright light shone in her eyes. “Ma’am can you hear me?” A hand, firm against her head held it still. She grunted in response, the words fumbling on her tongue. Weakly she struggled to push herself up. The light moved out of her eyes and for a moment she wasn’t on a snow covered ground but on her back with the worried face of an EMT hanging over her.

   “I hear you.” The words finally croaked out of her.

   “You were in an accident.” The EMT said.

   “Obviously.” She snarked and like a switched was flipped she was back on her stomach in the snow. The EMT gone and she alone. Over the silence of snow the crunch of footsteps echoed out with the whinny of horses. Fighting the leaden cold in her limbs, she pushed herself up a few inches. Straining to see the horses, confused and freezing, her eyes spied riders coming over a hill. They seemed to be following a trail that ran near her.

   Two men talked, voices unintelligible but rumbling low together, as their horses trotted near. A familiarity about the horses struck her but she couldn’t place it. Disoriented and growing sore with her shivering, her lungs burned as she forced a cry out for help. The riders pulled up sharp, their heads snapping to where she collapsed back into the snow. As her eyes closed she felt jostled, only to open them to the inside of an ambulance. For a moment she tried to talk again but something flipped again and the snow was freezing against her skin. Strong, gloved hands were pulling her from the ground.

   “How did you get out here?” She knew that voice. Where did she know that voice? Squinting up to the man a shock ran through her as she placed him.

   “Charles Smith?” The stocky man looked like she’d slapped him. His brows knitted together as he glanced to the other rider who hadn’t dismounted. Weakly rolling her head around, it was her turn to look like she’d been slapped. “Arthur Morgan?” The large man sat up straighter in his saddle, his shoulders going tight.

   “How do you know us?” Charles asked, his arm under her shoulders still supporting her as she shivered.

   “I think I’m dead.” Her head swam as she tried to understand exactly how she was inside her favorite game. “There was...” Memories, half formed and shades in her mind, flashed. Chasing after her damn cat, tires screeching, pain through her side. The memory made her gasp in pain and cough, doubling up. “An accident.” She hoarsely coughed out. Something clutched in her hand was colder against her palm and drew her eyes. Her phone. “Fucking hell.” Charles kept her steady, pulling her towards his horse. He hadn’t seen what was in her hand.

   “I think you need to come with us.” It wasn’t a suggestion. Looking around, she realized she recognized the area from the start of the game. Snow blanketed the ground around them, a single trail the horses had forged the only path through the snow. Two deer were strung over the flanks of the two horses.

   “I’m in Colter? I’m at the start of it.” Maybe this was her dying brain’s idea of a enjoyable send off. Taima, the grey Appaloosa of Charles, snorted as he pushed her up. A long forgotten muscle memory of riding as a child took hold and she was able to almost pull herself up. Her fingers, cold and numb, wouldn’t grab hold of the saddle horn though and Charles really had to force her up. Once settled, he climbed up behind her and shrugged out of his coat. Wrapping it around herself, she felt some of the shivering slow a bit. Charles called out to his horse and they began a bumpy ride back to the camp. She knew what she’d find there, she knew this story well. Her eyes fluttered closed and she felt herself falling backwards.

   “Ma’am, can you tell me your name?” That professionally polite EMT’s voice was in her ear again.

   “Juniper, my name is Juniper.” She mumbled.

   “Alright, Juniper. How do you know me?” Charles’ voice pulled her back into the game, away from reality. Juniper laughed a bit, her voice barely above a whisper.

   “I know all of you. I know the ending.” She realized his arms around her was all that was holding her up and she fought against the fuzzy feeling in her head to sit up straight.

   “Charles, is this a good idea?” Arthur’s twang rang clear against the quiet snow.

   “She’s delirious, half dead. You want to leave her to die?” His answer was quick. “Besides, if she dies we can’t figure out how she knows us.” Arthur gave a non committal sound before dropping the question. She laughed again, cackling at the entire situation.

   “So distrustful, Arthur.” Juniper mockingly chided him. “Could use that distrust in the right places. Save yourself a whole lot of fucking trouble.” “What exactly is that supposed to mean?” His voice was tight and angry. Juniper was about to respond but she faded back out. The bumping of the horse ride became the bumping of an ambulance ride. An oxygen mask was over her face. Confused she struggled against it for a second before realizing where she was. The constant slipping free of reality was starting to give her brain whiplash.

   “Am I going to die?” She muttered, the mask making it hard to be heard.

   “I doubt it.” A woman’s voice, bitter and scratchy, responded and with a groan of annoyance Juniper was pulled back into the fantasy. She was warmer at least, by a small bit. Still shivering but now under several blankets and curled up in front of a large fire, Juniper tried to sit up. Her side was sore, felt like she was a giant bruise from her shoulder to her hip on her left side. The fingers of her left hand still clutched her phone tightly. Keeping it well hidden under the blankets seemed the most prudent idea.     

   Miss Grimshaw narrowed her eyes down at Juniper. The sharp eyes of the old woman narrowed and she looked at Juniper as if she was something dangerous. Curious, she looked away from her and looked around the cabin she was in. It was the cabin used by Dutch and Arthur. The tiny fireplace was blazing as she huddled in front of it. Miss Grimshaw was whispering in hushed tones with Hosea as Juniper mulled things over.

   “So that was the hunting trip, which means they already got John.” She muttered to herself. Warmed and given time to think Juniper realized claiming to know the future might sound a little too crazy and struggled to think of a convincing lie. “The men who saved me, where are they?” That sounded like a reasonable question and it was apparently convincing enough as Miss Grimshaw relaxed noticeably.

   “They’re out now. Who are you?” Her voice was suspicious and after taking a minute to think it over, Juniper couldn’t blame her.

   “Juniper, Ma’am.” She nodded as she thought over what was happening. “I’m dreaming, I have to be.”

   “This ain’t a dream, dearie.” Was the soft, sorry response from Miss Grimshaw. She almost looked like she felt pity for her. Juniper hadn’t thought Miss Grimshaw was capable of pity. A few more rushed whispers to Hosea and Miss Grimshaw left the cabin quickly. Hosea sat back in a chair, his gun across his lap as he watched Juniper.

   "How's the cough?" She asked, eyeing the man as his hands tightened around the gun. Hosea seemed to bore a glare right through her. Sighing heavily to herself, Juniper turned back to the fire.

   It was easy to look into the fire and think. It wasn’t easy to accept what she already knew. None of it really made sense but she’d always been one to take what was thrown at her, so Juniper spent her time trying to remember as much from the game as she could as well as her cousins.

   Her entire cousin’s family had always been way too into Civil War reenactment and had sucked Juniper along when she was a kid. The clothing, listening to them go on and on about what life was like back then. It’d been fun but as she’d grown older it’d been hard to avoid the longing looks in their eyes when they talked about ‘back then’. So she’d mostly stopped hanging out with them, but it’d been lonely. All the talks, the facts were sitting there in her head and she could mostly remember them.

   “Miss? I'm Abigail.” Abigail’s voice broke her thoughts. Juniper jumped a bit, her fingers clutching her phone against her thigh. Behind her, Abigail held a bundle of clothing in her arms. Hosea was gone and Juniper hadn’t even heard him leave. “Miss Grimshaw sent me over, we managed to find you some clothes. They’re not very nice, but it’ll be better than those underthings you’ve got on.” Juniper looked down at her pajamas she had on. Light shorts and a tank top. It had been summer before.

   ”Thank you, Abigail. That’s very generous of you. I know you don’t have much.” She didn’t move. Abigail crouched next to her.

   “Charles said you’d been in an accident?” Her eyes looked Juniper over. “Would you like help dressing?” It was an earnest offer but Juniper knew the woman had to be curious about her. She knew, though, that she probably wouldn’t be able to figure out the clothing without help.

   “Yes, that would be very kind of you.” Juniper tucked her phone into the folds of the blankets and went to stand. Her entire side screamed in pain and she grunted, stalling her motions and grabbing her aching ribs. Abigail caught a cry of surprise in her throat and reached out to help. “Shit, look at your side!” She cried out. Juniper looked to see mottled black and blue down her left side. Thin, strong fingers slipped around Juniper’s arms to help her to her feet.

   “At least it looks as bad as it feels.” Juniper managed to croak as she adjusted to standing upright with her side killing her. Abigail gave a half hearted chuckle.

   “Some accident. Maybe you shouldn’t bother with a corset until that’s healed up.” Abigail offered. Juniper cursed internally as she remembered corsets were common now. She’d have to look into finding a pair of pants at some point too.

   “Yeah, I think so too.” She was still examining her side. “At least I don’t think anything’s broken.”

   “Well, let’s hope. Do you want to keep wearing those...” Abigail’s eyes raked up and down her. “Underthings? I have some here that are a bit...nicer.” She was choosing her words carefully. Juniper shrugged.

   “Sure, why not?” A chemise and drawers were handed to her and Abigail turned away, busying herself looking at something in the pile of clothing to give Juniper a little privacy. They felt soft, worn and nearly threadbare but comfortable. When she cleared her throat, Abigail turned back and helped her slide a shift over her head and smooth it down. Away from the fire and blankets, cold was starting to seep into her bones and Juniper started to shiver.

   “How long were you out there?” Abigail asked as she separated out a bundle of skirts and held it open for Juniper to step into.

   “I don’t know. Couldn’t have been long though, no one would last out there very long.” Juniper looked away as she tried to think. Abigail was buttoning the skirts closed around her waist.

   “Thank goodness Charles and Arthur found you. Those are probably the two most trustworthy men we have here.” She smirked a bit to herself and Juniper caught it. Abigail quickly turned away to pick up the skirt of a blue dress. “It’s a bit long on you.” She clucked to herself as she buttoned the skirt closed and smoothed it down for her.

   “Better long than short in this weather.” Juniper glanced outside. The whiteness of snow reflected enough light to make it difficult to see much outside. Abigail brought over a blouse to wear and began helping her button it up. “Do you mind if I ask you a question?” She asked, keeping her eyes on the buttons.

   “No.” Juniper swallowed, wondering what she could be thinking.

   “Why did you cut your hair like that?” Abigail finally glance up at the shaved side of her head. Juniper sighed in relief and rubbed her hand against the short shorn hair.

   “Oh, well I always wanted to but my husband said it would look ugly so I didn’t. And then he...left me.” That part still stung and Juniper grimaced a littler. “So I shaved it down because fuck him.” Abigail’s eyes narrowed and she gave a small nod.

   “I think it looks nice. You’ll certainly fit right in with this group.” She laughed a bit as she held out a worn and patched coat to Juniper. Slipping inside, Juniper buttoned it up the the throat and began pulling her blankets up off the ground to cozy up inside. Almost forgetting about her phone, Juniper had to catch it quick before Abigail saw it and stuffed it inside one of the deep pockets of the coat. Wrapping a fire warmed blanket around herself, she looked back to Abigail. It was hard to comprehend that she was standing next to a character she’d seen a thousand times in a game.

   “You’re a strong woman, Abigail.” The words slipped out before Juniper could realize how odd it must sound. Abigail only cocked her head in curiosity and a confused smile spread across her face.

   “Thank you, I guess. Miss Grimshaw has us huddled up in the building across the way there. You’re welcome to join us when you’re ready.” Abigail opined out through the window.

   "I have some things to think about." Juniper replied, her mind wandering already. Abigail gave a small smile and nodded.

   "Of course." With that, she left. Juniper sat back in front of the fire, watching the flames dance as she tried to construct a plan of what to do.

 

   Unsure how long she spaced out staring into the fire, a heavy hand on her shoulder made her flinch away and then immediately regret the movement. Her side pulled enough to make her grunt and grab her ribs with her good arm. Looking up to see Arthur standing over her, she shifted a bit to see Hosea and Dutch standing back. Their eyes were watching her closely as she shifted under the blankets to face them from the floor.

   “Gentlemen, you’ll forgive me if I don’t stand up.” She said through gritted teeth as she stilled herself and waited for the pain to subside.

   “How’d you end up here in the mountains in just your underthings, Miss?” Dutch spoke. Juniper let out a stiff breath once she could inhale without trouble again. Her eyes darted between the men towering over her.

   “Honestly, I have no idea. There was, an accident...” She trailed off as she struggled again to remember exactly what had happened. “I hit my head, real hard, I think.” Ground, concrete rushing towards her flashed in her minds eye for a second before she could shake it off. “Sorry, Dutch, I ain’t got anything else to tell you.” Dutch pulled back as she said his name and she could have kicked herself for not paying attention to what she was saying.

   “I told you, Dutch. She knows us.” Arthur said hoarsely.

 “My dear,” Hosea crouched in front of her. “How do you know us?” Juniper thought hard of an answer they’d accept but nothing came to her.

   “I told Arthur, I’ve been here before. I know this story, I know how it ends.” She met his eyes for a minute. There was only confusion there.

   “Well then, Miss Juniper, how does it end?” Dutch asked, skeptical. When she looked up at him the world shifted, flickering back and forth between real and solid to the game style just shy of real. A sharp pain behind her eyes made Juniper winced, pinching the bridge of her nose as she looked away. A vice on her head made it hard to think clearly. The words she wanted to say stuck in her throat. Shaking her head she tried to shake off the splitting pain in her brain and find what words would come.

   “Can’t fight gravity, Dutch.” She finally managed to spit words out. The first game had been a favorite of hers long ago and his final speech in that one was looping in her mind like a record playing. Dutch snorted, not believing her. He stepped back.

   “She’s probably some poor woman the O’Driscoll’s caught. Gone crazy in their hands.” He turned away, glancing out of the window. Juniper grew annoyed at his dismissal, her face settling into lopsided snarl.

   “Greta Van Der Linde, buried in Blackwater. Beloved mother of Dutch.” She grappled for any facts she could remember. “Would the O’Driscoll’s know that?” She could see the easy movements of his shoulders grow stiff as he stilled. “What exactly went wrong in Blackwater, anyways? Never could figure that out, annoyingly.” He turned, his hand strayed to the gun at his hip. Juniper debated whether she should be worried or not. “I told you. I know this story. I know the ending.” The repetitiveness was getting on her nerves.

   “But you can’t tell us?” Hosea asked, standing up.

   “Apparently not.” Juniper looked away from Dutch, confused herself. This was her own brain, why couldn’t she just say what she wanted? “I guess nothing’s that easy."

   “Maybe a man ain’t supposed to know how he dies.” Arthur suggested, watching Dutch. Juniper snorted at that idea, causing Arthur to glance at her suspiciously. He would sure know how he was going to die. Her thoughts stalled. If this was her own brain, dream, purgatory, whatever it was, why couldn’t she change it how she wanted?

   “Take me with you.” She said, looking back to the three men. “Have you robbed the train yet?” They looked between each other and back at her in a fearful surprise. “So not yet, I couldn’t convince you not to?”

   “Will something go wrong on the train?” Hosea asked. Juniper sighed and shook her head. “Not exactly” With a grumble she dropped the question and tried to move on. “Once you’ve robbed the train, you'll head out to Horseshoe Overlook.” She thought of that camp, always had been her favorite one. “Think of me as a fortune teller. You could use an ace up your sleeve, trust me.” A pleased grin spread across her face as the three men in front of her gave each other glances.

   “You’d help us?” Hosea asked. He didn't sound like he quite believed her but Juniper nodded enthusiastically anyways.

   “Hell yeah, I love you guys.” She assured them. An excitement was bubbling up in her chest that made her grin a little manic. Getting to live through her favorite game, changing it how she wanted. Couldn’t think of a better way to spend a brain injury. The three men just looked confused between themselves before staring down at Juniper again.

   "Horseshoe Overlook?" Dutch asked. Juniper nodded. He took a breath to think before holding out a hand to help her to her feet. "You'll need to pull your own weight, we'll find you something to do." Juniper took his hand and leveraged herself up with groan. Arthur reached out to help her to her feet as Dutch kept talking. "You'll be warmer if you stay with the other women."

   "And maybe keep that 'I know this story' shit to yourself." Arthur hissed, more of a threat than advice. Juniper glanced at him with a soft nod, it was a suggestion she'd already been trying to follow. He let go of her arm, satisfied that she heard him.

   "Arthur, show our little fortune teller to the women's cabin." Hosea suggested. Juniper could tell he still didn't believe her but she wasn't worried. He would in time. Arthur gave a curt nod to the older man before heading towards the door.

   "Come on then, what did you say your name was again?" He barely glanced over his shoulder at her as shoved the door open and a blast of cold wind cut through her clothes to her core.

   "Juniper. My friend's call me June." Wrapping her arms around herself, she trudged behind him attempting to use his large form as a windbreak.

   "Well, Mrs. Juniper." Arthur drawled pointedly. "I ain't sure exactly what to make of you, just don't try nothing." He growled at her.

   "You'll have to trust me eventually, Mister Morgan." Juniper copied his tone. "You're a smart enough man, even if you pretend not to be." Arthur paused in front of the door to the women's cabin and Juniper grabbed his arm. "Could it be possible for me to get a map of the surrounding area?" He looked at her as if he hadn't quite heard her.

   "Yes, I suppose I could find one for you." His tone was careful, confused as he pushed the door open and waited for Juniper to step inside. The cabin was slightly warmer than the previous one, bodies huddled close. Woodsmoke and a light musty odor filled the room. Juniper stood in front of the door, unsure what to do next until Arthur roughly shoved her forward so he could close the door behind him. She skidded to the side and sat down on a crate away from the huddled women. Eyes were on her but when she didn't say anything they looked to Arthur. He grumbled some kind of explanation and the women started talking amongst themselves, looking to Abigail. Juniper wasn't listening though, already deep in thought.

   A day or two until they left Colter, Juniper thought to herself, a few days to plan out what she was going to do. To remember the whole storyline and figure out how to correct things as best as possible. Not an impossible task.

   It turned out to be a lonely one though, the other women seemed almost afraid of Juniper and none of the men were around much. Miss Grimshaw had given her an extra blanket when she’d curled up to sleep in her seat but had rudely jerked it off of her the next morning

   “Make yourself useful! We’re loading up the wagons today, get up! Get up!” She nudged Juniper with her boot and walked off as the girl sat up. Her joints were a little stiff from the cold and it took a few minutes for her to work the kinks out. Still foggy from a fitful sleep, Juniper stepped outside and was immediately accosted by Grimshaw shoving things into her arms and directing her where to go.

   Well past noon most of the men arrived back and began helping load up. Nearly an hour after that Arthur came galloping into camp. The wagons were well prepared and ready. As Juniper closed to gate of the wagon she’d been packing up she saw Abigail helping John limp to the wagon ahead of her. He looked worse than she remembered and a pain ran through her as she remembered the first game.

   “Where’s your mind at?” Arthur asked, pausing as he was about to climb up into the driver’s seat.

   “About a decade from now.” He scoffed at her answer. Juniper thought for a moment she saw a glint of actual concern for her in his eyes.

   “Hey, you wanted a map, right?” Arthur said as she climbed into the back of the wagon. He reached into his satchel and handed her a folded piece of paper. “Thank you.” Juniper said as she unfolded a map that was so familiar to her. Shaking her head, she wedged herself between some rolls of canvas. Arthur snapped the reins and the wagon set out. Hosea talked on, familiar enough to Juniper she was mouthing the words as he said them. As they rode, she pulled out her phone and checked it. Fifty percent battery life and full bars somehow. Curious, Juniper looked at what WiFi network she had connected to.

_KaiserGuest_

   Well that answered that question, Juniper thought. Shaking off the dark thoughts of where she really was, she spent the time marking her map up as much as possible with a pencil she borrowed from Arthur when he wasn’t looking.

   “Watch that wheel.” She called out as the wagon splashed into the river crossing. Cringing as she heard it break, Juniper pocketed her phone and map, ready to climb out. Arthur gave her a sullen glance as he hopped down. She didn’t think he’d seen what she’d been doing but it was hard to tell. Charles held a hand out for Juniper as she jumped down from the back. Together, with Hosea they held the wagon up while Arthur put the wheel on. As they finished and set the wagon back down Hosea called attention to the riders on the crest above them and Juniper gave an enthusiastic wave to them while Charles stared at her.

   “We’ll get to meet them later!” She tried to explain excitedly but the men ignored her. Rolling her eyes, she climbed up into the wagon again. Charles climbed up beside her, perched on the edge of the wagon. His eyes cut to her as she listened to Hosea describe how the Heartland had been stolen from the Natives. She realized she may have scoffed out loud and quickly tried to quiet herself.

   When they picked up Javier, his eyes widened a bit when he saw her. She realized that none of the men outside Arthur, Dutch, Hosea and Charles even knew she was there. He flashed her a brilliant smile. Much more charming in the real life, she thought as she returned it. Light filtered down through the canopy of trees surrounding Horseshoe Overlook and Juniper watched the leaves above them while the wagon rattled into camp. Javier helped her down, his hand resting lightly on her back for a moment longer than necessary.

   Dutch’s speech was the same as she remembered it and now it was hard to not feel annoyed by his soap box. It felt hollow now, knowing how he went in the end and she realized it was going to be a lot harder than she anticipated playing nice with Dutch.

   "And please, everyone." Dutch wasn't finished like she remembered. Suddenly Hosea was pulling Juniper in front of the group to stand near Dutch. He kept his arms around her in an almost protective way. "This here is Juniper. We found her up in the snow and she's going to be staying with us for a while. She says she's a fortune teller so I'm sure we'll be having good fortune from now on." All eyes fell on her and she wanted to squirm but took a breath to hold herself steady. Abigail smiled at her encouragingly and Juniper returned it. "Now everyone, get to work!" He finished.

   “Miss Juniper.” Grimshaw’s harsh tone pulled her out of her thoughts. “Now, I don’t know exactly what you can do but-“

   “I was thinking I could help Pearson with cooking.” She offered. Miss Grimshaw looked surprised, startled into silence almost. “I’m not particularly good or swift with sewing but I can cook edible food that tastes better than shoe leather. I have been privy to the discovery of spices.”

   “I suppose that would work.” The older woman said carefully.She eyed Juniper suspiciously but walked off to speak with Pearson. Karen walked over, taking Juniper by the arm.

   "I can show you where the women sleep. You know, I don't think I've ever seen someone shut old Grimshaw up like that before. Can you really tell the future?" She asked excitedly as she began walking Juniper towards the wagon.

   "Oh, yes. And I already know we're going to be good friends." Juniper smiled as Karen laughed.

   "What about your hair?" The buxom woman reached up to graze her fingers across the shaved side of her head. "Is it like that because you're a fortune teller?"

   “I just like it that way.” Karen seemed satisfied with that answer and began introducing her to the other women around the camp.


	2. Horseshoe Overlook

“Charles,” Juniper pulled him aside a week after they arrived at Horseshoe. He had just finished chopping wood and Juniper was hoping to catch him before he started off on another chore or hunting trip.

“Juniper, what do you need?” He smiled at her. Despite his initial reservations about her, Charles had warmed up to her quickly. She hadn’t expected that from the stoic man but his smile was nice to look at.

“The next time you have a spare minute, would you be so kind as to...” She trailed off, worried he would refuse. He tilted his head to the side in confusion. Playing with the straight razor she had stolen from Arthur’s shaving station, Juniper took a breath and held it up. “Shave the side of my head.” That had obviously not been what Charles had been expecting.

“Why are you asking me?” He started to walk off and Juniper trailed after him.

“Because I know you’ll do a good job. Come on, shave my head and I’ll tell you your future.” In truth, Juniper was dying to tell someone what she knew. Even on her best day she had a hard time filtering and having to keep that a secret was killing her. Charles stalled and looked back at her, curious.

“How do you know I’ll do a good job?”

“Because I know what hairstyle you’ll have in a few months.” She grinned and bit at her bottom lip, knowing she had hooked him. Charles glanced over towards the campfire and gave a small nod.

“Alright, later today. After lunch.” His eyes glanced around the campsite. “We’ll go down to the river so no one can hear us.”

She was excited the rest of the morning. It’d been a week of nothing happening. Repairs had to be made to wagons and tents and clothing needed mending but aside from that, Juniper was bored and ready for the story to get started. Her phone had died the first night. Any messages she had tried to send wouldn’t deliver but she could search the internet for a few pertinent pieces of information. Her map was filled out with almost every place she felt she might need to hit but without a horse she didn’t have any real way to leave camp.

Charles had simply given her a sharp nod of his head before mounting up on Taima. Juniper stifled her excited yelp and hurried to scramble up behind him, using his offered arm for support. The ride was much different from the last time she’d shared a horse with him.

From behind him, she could see the river in the distance. They trotted down the dirt path towards the Dakota, the even tempo of the hoofbeats echoing into the valley. Once away from camp the pleasant sound of birds and other wildlife sang through the air. Everything was just like she remembered it. Charles pulled up beside the river bank and waited for Juniper to dismount first.

“So my future, huh?” He almost sounded like he was joking as he motioned towards a rock. Juniper handed him the razor as she sat down. Across the river she could see deer drinking. They scattered as a rider on the opposite bank rode past. She reached into the pocket of her skirt and held up her dead phone. Charlie took it and looked the rectangle over.

“What is it?” He was baffled.

“A telephone, kind of. With that I can access the whole of human knowledge. I use it to argue with strangers and look at pictures of kittens.” She watched as he tapped each side with his finger and slid his thumb against the smooth glass. “It ran out of power pretty soon after I got here, but I thought it might convince someone even if it’s not working.”

“Why are you showing me this?.” He handed it back to her and tilted her head to the side.

“Because I need at least one person to not think I’m crazy. You’re the most reasonable so I figured, I had a shot of convincing you.” Charles laughed at her explanation.

“If I’m the most reasonable you’ve got an uphill climb ahead of you.” He went silent as he worked. Juniper tried to sit still but couldn’t keep her foot from bouncing. “And what about my future?”

“To be honest, I really only know about ten years into the future for you.” The blade scraped against her head in short strokes. “But you, you end up fine.” The pain between her eyes, like she’d dove too deep in a pool, pressed in an aching way against her skull. She clinched her eyes closed and pushed through it. “Probably the most fine out of anyone.”

“Can you be more specific than that?” He tilted her head forward as he shaved behind her ear.

“Well, you end up bare knuckle boxing for a while in Saint Denis. You do very well.” The pain moved from a dull ache to a stab and Juniper winced.

“Sorry, did I nick you?” He paused, his fingers light against her scalp.

“No, no you’re fine.” She reached up to press against the space between her eyes. “It’s nothing.” Charles didn’t move, Juniper realized he didn’t believe her. “Sometimes my head hurts when I try to tell other people about their futures.” Charles silently started shaving again.

“Then maybe you shouldn’t be telling anyone.” He wiped away at the bare skin of her scalp before handing her the razor back.

“No, that’s dumb!” She smirked back at him. “Thank you, Charles. Sorry I can’t really tell you more.” As her gaze traveled down the river, she spotted the abandoned remanence of gold panning that sat outside Limpany just down the river. “But I can pay you back...will you give me a ride? Just down the road to the burnt out mining town.” She pointed down the road and looked back at Charles. He gave a shrug and turned back towards Taima.

“Sure, why not.”

 

Charles smelled the best out of the entire camp, Juniper decided. Woodsmoke and something floral. She suspected he probably bathed the most as well. Sitting behind him was a small pleasure over the crushing boredom of camp.

“Why do you wear your hair that way?” He asked suddenly as he slowed Taima to a walk when Limpany came into view.

“Makes me feel brave. Just over at the Sheriff’s at the back.” She pointed past him and Charles pulled to a stop in front of the burnt husk of a building. Ash flew from her steps as Juniper dropped down and stumbled into the office. The lockbox was right where she remembered it though it was much harder for her to pop the lock open with a rock.

“I need a knife.” She muttered to herself as she beat at the box. “I need a damn horse.” With a heavy clang the box fell open and the gold bar glinted up at her. The prize was worth the scuffed knuckles. It was heavy in her palm, heavier than she thought it should be. Walking back out of the building, she looked the bar over. It was smaller than she had expected.

“What do you say we split it, huh? That’s more than enough for me to get a horse of my own.” When he didn’t respond she looked up to see him gone, Taima standing placidly at the charred hitching post. Juniper stepped out into the blackened center of Limpany to look around in confusion. It wasn’t like Charles to run off.

“You’ll do well to stay away from here, girlie.” A voice with a lilt drew her attention just a few buildings away. A green vested O’Driscoll was grinning at her. She stared him down silently, aware she had no weapons on her. He was already brandishing his gun. “Dangerous men around here.” Back at the road, Juniper could see another O’Driscoll waiting.

“If I see any, I’ll let you know.” Juniper replied.

“Oh, a feisty one. We’ll see if you keep that up.” He kept stalking towards her.

“You can’t kill me in any way that matters.” She retorted, enjoying the way confusion and concern fluttered across his face.

“What you got in your hands there?” He was nearly an arms reach away. The gold bar clenched tight in her hand, she waited.

“Come closer and I’ll show you.” The taunt worked, she could smell him as he stepped close. Whiskey and unwashed sweat. Without waiting for a response, Juniper let her fist fly up into the underside of his jaw as hard as she could manage. Her feet planted, she threw her arm from the hip and tried to put all her body weight behind it. A little bit of luck and her fist hit just right. The extra umf from the gold bar did the trick and the O’Driscoll went down like a sack of bricks. When she looked up to the other, she could see Charles slitting his throat from behind. As he dropped the corpse and began walking towards her, Juniper spit on the O’Driscoll while wiping a splatter of blood off her gold bar onto her skirt. She dropped the bar into her pocket before looking up at Charles.

“You alright?” He asked.

“I didn’t know you cared.” She smirked back, shaking her hand out. “Yeah, I’m fine. Not my first time throwing a punch.” Memories came back to her that she’d been trying to ignore. How much she missed the feel of raw knuckles surprised her. Charles took her hand, running a calloused thumb across the reddened skin.

“Don’t think you need the hair to be brave.” His voice was soft. Her heart still racing, Juniper looked up at him. A broad smile grew on her face. The O'Driscoll behind them stirred a bit only for Charles to fling a throwing knife into his throat. With a gurgling grunt, he fell back to the ground dead.

"You don't have to be back at camp anytime soon, do you?" She asked, looking up at him through her lashes.

"No." His voice was a hushed rumble in his throat. One thick hand slid past her jaw, running his thumb against the freshly shaved skin. Juniper's eyes glanced around the open space of Limpany then looked to the mostly burnt shell of the old saloon. Charles' eyes followed her and the barest of smiles played on his lips. Those lips, Juniper couldn't help but stare. Abruptly, she turned on her heels and pulled Charles after her.  
Inside the burnt rubble, she shoved him up against a wall. He feigned a grunt, smiling more as she pressed against him. Her hands tugged at his belt, fumbling with the buckle. Inside her, need rose up, unstoppable as always after a fight. It never failed to get her blood up. Their lips crashed together, seeking and forceful. The belt finally came loose in her hands. She pulled back, breathing hard, to look down as it slipped free of Charles's hips.

"You always like this after a fight?" He asked, out of breath. Dropping the belt to the floor with a heavy thud, her fingers were quick with the fly.

"What can I say? Being alive gets me going." She almost laugh but it was quickly swallowed as he met her again, his hands twining themselves in her hair. Biting at his bottom lip, Juniper explored his mouth. Her hand slipped beneath the waist of his pants and closed around a quickly hardening member.

“I’ll have to get you into more fights, then.” As he pulled back laughter played at the edges of his voice. Suspicions of his size were confirmed when she finally managed to free him from the constraining fabric. A small breath of appreciation rushed from her lips as she dropped to her knees.

"What are you-" He didn't get a chance to finish the question before Juniper swallowed him to the hilt, burying her nose in the curly hair at the base. A loud grunt of appreciation was forced out of him and almost mechanically his hand flew to the back of her head. Gathering her hair up, he rested his full hand against her. Hearing his moans made it hard to breathe and she could feel desire tightening in her core. His cock hardened in her mouth and she had to pull back to catch a breath. Desire made her breath heavy as she took the swollen head back in her mouth, swirling her tongue around the glans before slipping down as far as she could. Charles groaned loudly. Juniper looked up to see his head tossed back and eyes squeezed tight. A tingling flash of arousal slipped through her. Tilting her hips forward she began to rub herself against his leg, the feeling only building in her. His hand tightened on her hair and pulled her head off him.

"Get up here." The growl in his voice, the hand tangled in her hair pulling her up, it made her whine in need. Juniper gave a gasp before licking her lips. Flushed and breathing to match, she watched as his face twisted up in arousal. "I wasn't expecting all this for a hair cut."

"I pay my debts." Her words teased, and Charles shook his head. A hand slipped behind her neck and he sidestepped before pressing her against the wall. He pressed his chest against her back and Juniper could smell that underlying scent of floral again.

"I'm not complaining, but you don't owe me anything." His voice was a whisper against her neck quickly replaced with wet, soft kisses. Pulling the collar of her blouse to the side, he grazed his teeth against her shoulder. A hiss faded into a groan that slid out of Juniper as she pressed back against him.

"Fine then," Her breath hitched as Charles roughly pulled her skirts up and slipped a hand over her hip. "You'll owe me." A chuckle rumbled in his chest as his hand dipped down, brushing past the fabric of her drawers. A thick finger slid inside her with no resistance, already wet and moaning for the contact.

"We'll discuss who owes what later." He pumped a finger in and out of her for a moment before moving to her clit. Already wound up, Juniper swallowed hard before a moan was wrenched out of her. He shifted behind her, she felt the swelled head of his cock pressing against her flushed and ready opening. He hesitated and Juniper groaned in impatience, shoving her ass back against him and seating his cock inside her.  
Charles groaned, pressing his head into the back of her neck as he slammed into her the rest of the way. Pulling out until he was almost entirely out of her and ramming back into her, Juniper gave a low moan again. The moan rose in pitch to a cry when he started swirling his fingers in a circle over her clit.

"You feel good, June." His low voice was in her ear. Thrusting his hips into her at a rapid pace, Juniper was quickly losing the ability to quip at him. Her hands splayed against the blackened wood next to her head. Charles raised a hand to lace his fingers in hers, resting his head in the crook of her neck. His own grunts of effort as his tempo picked up raced with hers. "Want you to come on me." As he moaned the words out the fingers working her pressed harder, wringing a near sob from her throat. The pressure in her built as she felt his girth spreading her open with each thrust, her body wrapping around him with a slick easiness.  
Shuddering to climax around Charles, she trembled against him as her cries fled her. He moved quick, his hand leaving her mound to clinch her hip bruising tight. Pulling free, he spilled his spend on the floorboards beneath them with a guttural cry. Juniper trembled lightly as she came down, breathing deep and heavy to slow her heartbeat. Charles wrapped his arm around her waist and pressed close to her once again. A soft kiss pressed against the back of her neck.

"Anytime you want me to shave your hair again, I'm happy to help." His voice was still thick and heady. Juniper gave a shaky laugh as her breath returned.

"Oh," Her voice quivered a bit. "I'll be taking you up on that later." She swallowed and another deep breath allowed her to regain some semblance of control once again. Charles pulled back, smoothing her skirts back down before tucking himself away gingerly. Juniper turned to face him, leaning back against the wall with a smirk.

"We should be getting back to camp." She suggested. Charles returned her smirk.

"Wouldn't want anybody to think we were getting up to trouble." He said sarcastically.

 

When they rode back into camp, Charles helped her down from the horse. His hand lingered against her waist for just a second before Karen started calling for her. Pulling away, he looked to Taima, brushing her out as Juniper laughed a little at him. Walking over to Karen, she couldn't help but notice the smirk on Karen's face.

"What?" She asked, feigning innocence. Karen laughed and took her arm.

"Pearson was looking for you," She began leading Juniper towards the chuckwagon.  
"and you were gone for a while with Charles."

"Oh, he was helping me with my hair," Juniper ran a hand over the bare skin of her scalp. Karen gave a hmm of dissatisfaction. "and we might have been attacked by some O'Driscolls." Pearson was calling her name as she walked up.

"Good of you to actually show up to help me." He said, glaring at her.

"I'm sorry, Pearson. Did you really need my help to boil the flavor out of boot leather?" Karen snorted, letting go of her arm.

"Well, I'll let you work then." She snickered, walking away quickly. Juniper watched as she ducked around John's tent towards Tilly and Mary Beth. She shook her head, knowing they were going to gossip about her and not really minding. Taking up a knife, she began chopping up vegetables for the stew as Pearson continued to complain about her absence. Jack walked by, his eyes watching her as she worked.

"Hey, Jack." Juniper called to him. He paused, looking at her as she grabbed up an apple and tossed it to him. "Have a snack." He was so skinny and gangly, she couldn't help but want to feed him. Jack caught the apple, a grin spreading across his face.

"Thank you Miss Juniper!" The boy ran off, clutching the apple to his chest. "Mama!" She could hear him hollering as he ran off. She laughed to herself and went back to chopping the endless amount of vegetables that Pearson had left for her. Feeling eyes on her, she glanced around for a second. Arthur was sitting in his tent, staring at her. He kept his head tilted down, hat covering his eyes but she knew he was watching her. Abigail stepped into her view, blocking Juniper's line of sight to Arthur.

"Miss Juniper, you feeding my boy?" She sounded jokingly offended. "Think I can't manage myself?" Juniper laughed and threw a handful of carrots into the stew pot, smiling before she look up at her.

"Oh, no ma'am, Abigail. Just looked like he wanted an apple. He's only a little bit older than my own, so I can't help but want to feed him." She slid a potato onto the cutting board.

"Oh." Abigail went silent. "I didn't know you had a kid." She sounded downright sad.

"Yeah, a daughter. Maybe six months younger than Jack?" Juniper shook her head. "She's probably with her Daddy right now, safe and sound." Taking a minute to pause and think about it, she was sure that's where she'd be. "Don't worry about it." Shaking her head again, she waved off the concern she was pretending wasn't on Abigail's face.

"That must be hard, being away from her." Abigail's voice had gone soft. Chopping at the potato with a little more force than necessary for a moment, Juniper paused again with a sigh.

"Could I tell the boy a bedtime story before bed? I did it every night for my girl." Abigail watched her thoughtfully after she asked.

"Yeah, I think he'd like that." She smiled at Juniper, warmer than before. For a second the two women smiled at each other. Behind Abigail, Juniper saw John walking past. Abigail moved to walk off then.

"Hey, Abi." Juniper stopped her. "You're right to believe in him." She swallowed past the pain between her eyes. "One day he'll come around." Abigail's brows scrunched together in confusion, glancing behind her to John then back again. Cautiously, she nodded and walked off. When Juniper looked back, Arthur was still watching her.


	3. Chapter 3

Juniper was nearly dying of boredom, keeping track of the days and listening in anytime she heard Dutch start talking. Charles was sent off on a house job for a couple of days and it seemed someone was always asking her to do something. Mostly Miss Grimshaw. Some of the men would go out hunting. Arthur mostly stayed close for a while. It took her a while, but Juniper realized he was keeping an eye on her.

It was clear he didn't trust her or entirely believe her claims. She could understand that but it still rankled her a bit. Everytime she felt like she got a moment to herself, she would catch him watching her. Even if she slipped out of camp to go sit on the edge of the nearby cliff, he'd be nearby pretending like he wasn't following her. 

Annoyed at his gaze that always seemed be on her and feeling like she was a bit trapped by the relentless tasks that Grimshaw seemed to try and leverage on her Juniper was about to snap. As she tossed the ruined piece of darning she'd been working on all morning to the ground and stomped off towards the cliff. Her jaw was set, either she'd get some breathing room with a pretty view or throw Miss Grimshaw over the edge. 

Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Javier's guitar leaning up against a crate at the main campfire. Her fingers itched and her hand shot out to snatch it up before she could think better of it. Somewhere on the other side of camp she could hear Miss Grimshaw calling her name. A little bit quicker, she nearly ran behind the tent and moved to the cliff edge. Sitting down and letting her feet dangled, she checked the guitar's tuning finding it good enough. Made sense Javier would keep it in tune. At the moment she didn't care if he'd be mad she took it. It'd been a long while since she'd played any but it had always helped her feel centered. 

The first strum of the strings made her feel better, the tension building in her shoulders relaxing as she worked to remember any song to play. When a song finally came to her, she snorted in laughter a bit. 

"Well, it certainly fits." She muttered to herself as she her fingers remembered how to make chords. Bootsteps crunched up behind her but Juniper didn't bother to stop.

"You stole my guitar, _ladrona_." Javier said as he sat down beside her on the cliff, cross legged. 

"I'm only borrowing it." She said without looking up. He leaned over, watching her fingering.

"What are you playing? I've never heard it before." Javier wasn’t joking this time. Juniper paused, looking over to see him genuinely curious. 

"Oh, I'm trying to remember a song. I haven't played in a few...years." She paused as she said it. Had it really been that long? He sat in silence, watching closely as she started to remember the tune.

"Can I try?" He asked, reaching out. Juniper relented, her fingers were already sore, and handed the guitar back to him. Javier picked up the tune quickly, strumming better than she ever could and adding his own flair. "You know the words?"

"Yeah," She bit back the laugh. "used to play it all the time when I was younger." It sounded so much better when he played. 

"You should sing it sometime, at the campfire." He suggested. Juniper felt a blush rise to her cheeks as she looked out over the river snaking through the valley below.

"I'd have to be pretty damn drunk to be dumb enough to sing for you fools." She joked. Javier elbowed her a little as he continued strumming.

"Hey, _lindura_ , we got the beer if you've got the time." He laughed, looking out over the river. A sigh left him and he set the guitar to the side. "Hosea said you were a fortune teller?" 

"Of a sorts, yeah." She nodded slow, glancing over to him before leaning back on her arms. 

"Will I ever get to see Mexico again?" His voice was heavy with regret. Juniper knitted her brows, trying to find words to tell what she knew and avoid the pain in her head. 

"One day you will return." Keeping her eyes off of him as she closed her eyes to the pressure between her eyes. "You'll get to spend the rest of your life in Mexico. I don't know when, though. Not for a while." As she shut her mouth, the pressure faded and she could take a deep breath. Javier sat silent, his shoulders straight as he looked out. After a moment and a heavy sigh, he stood up.

"Thanks, _bruja_. You can keep practicing." He smirked down at her as she scowled at him.

"I'm not a witch!" She shouted after him, confused, only for Miss Grimshaw to hear her and call her name. "Oh shit." Juniper cursed under her breath as Miss Grimshaw sailed around the corner of the nearest tent. 

 

That night, Juniper was walking past the campfire. She froze when she heard Javier begin the first few notes of her song. When she looked over, her smirked up at her, daring her to sing. Juniper rolled her eye as she walked to the chuckwagon, angrily snatching a beer bottle from the crate. Popping the cap off on the edge of the work table, she drank down a third of it as she walked back to the campfire. Slamming the rest of the beer, she tossed the bottle to the ground and sat on the log next to the fire.

"You really going to make me do this?" She grumbled at him. Javier only shrugged, pausing for her to start singing. She sighed heavy, the eyes of a few people were on her and she wasn't quite drunk enough to ignore it. "Fine." She relented. The group went quiet as she closed her eyes and took a breath. 

_Desperado...  
Why don't you come to your senses?_

Javier came in with a flourish, the tune pulling her along as she sang the long remembered song. When she opened her eyes, it seemed like the men sitting around her were nearly spellbound by the song. 

_Don't your feet get cold in the winter time?  
When the sky won't snow and the sun won't shine..._

She kept her surprise at their reaction in check and finished the song. It felt like really Javier was carrying the whole song at this point. He even took a moment to do a small interlude before she began the next verse. Her eyes shifted beyond the firelight, seeing Arthur sitting in his tent. Cast in heavy shadows, it was hard to tell if he was looking at her or not. 

_You better let somebody love you...  
before it's too late_

Javier dragged out the ending a bit and Juniper waited a breath for him to finish before standing up. The group around the fire was still dead silent, only the crackle of the flames filling the night air once the guitar chord faded out. She turned, walking briskly back to the crate of beer to slam another beer and feel better. When she turned around, she was surprised to see Javier walking over. 

"Hey, _lindura_ , didn't mean to embarrass you." He leaned against the side of the chuckwagon as Juniper finished off the beer. It seemed that beers of 1899 were a little weaker than she was used to.

"You didn't embarrass me." She shook her head. "Just been a long time since I sang in front of people, hard to think I'm still good enough." Javier smiled at her, reaching out to tuck a strand of hair behind her ear.

“I think you sounded beautiful.” His voice was a low whisper and his hand stayed resting lightly against her jaw. Juniper set the empty bottle down on the edge of a table and grinned back at him. 

“Javier, are you flirting with me?” She felt his hand pressed a little stronger against her skin. 

“I don’t know, is it working?” His voice was playful as he leaned in closer. The scent of cigarettes and woodsmoke swirled in her nostrils. Juniper smirked and closed the gap, pressing her lips to his. Javier took a deep breath and dove into the kiss. Both hands went to her head as he pushed her back against a table beside the chuckwagon. A few items fell to the ground with a clatter. Voices stirred from in camp and Juniper pulled back, a hand against his chest. Her cheeks were flushed and her breath came fast as she looked past Javier’s shoulder.

“Is there anywhere a bit more private we could do this?” She asked, her hand grabbing hold of the bandana around his throat. Javier gave a small whine as he looked around.

“Maybe?” Pulling back, he grabbed her hand.

“I don’t need fancy.” She reassured him. 

"That's good around here." He snorted before pulling her through camp, past the scout fire. Juniper tripped after him, trying to contain her laughter as they passed sleeping gang members. The trees on the edge of camp quickly closed in around them as he pulled her deeper into the woods. Turning to face her, a smirk spread across his face.

“Now, where were we?” He leaned in, his mustache scratching against her skin as they kissed. Juniper almost laughed but the sound was quickly swallowed in their kiss. Javier leaned into her, a hand slipping under her thigh and pulling her leg around his waist. She gasped as his other hand slipped below her skirts, sliding quickly along her slit. 

"You feel like you want me already." He whispered in her ear, nibbling at the lobe. A calloused finger slipped inside her, his thumb swirling against her clit. Juniper gasped, her hips bucking against his hand. 

"Didn't think I was making that a secret." She gasped. Juniper could feel herself growing slick as he kissed down the side of her neck. Breathless desire grew in her core as he worked his fingers in and out of her. A low whine slipped from her chest as she dug her fingers into the fabric of his shirt, pulling him against her chest.

She let go of his shirt, moving her hands to the buckle of his belt. Javier found her mouth, kissing her again as Juniper bit his bottom lip. Their tongues explored each other as Juniper fumbled to undo his pants. Javier pulled back from her slick opening to do it himself. She laughed a bit, pulling back as he pulled his cock free and gave himself a few short strokes before lining it up with her. 

One solid thrust and he buried himself to the hilt. Juniper moaned louder than she should have but Javier covered her mouth with his. Still holding her leg over his hip, he bucked his hips into her, settling deeper inside her. 

"Oh, I could spend all night inside you, _bonita_." He murmured before starting up a rhythm that kept Juniper pinned against the tree behind her. She held onto him as best she could, using his bandana to pull him close again. With a change in angle, he hit just the right spot inside that forced her moans an octave higher. 

"Faster." She moaned, struggling to keep her breath as she slipped a hand between them to rub herself. Javier complied, picking up speed and ramming into her harder. The tingle of her building climax rose, flushing her neck and face with heat and color. She gave a small cry as she came hard around Javier's cock. He pounded into her, his thrusts growing shallow for a moment until her pulled free to spend on the ground with a grunt and heavy breaths. 

They panted together for a moment, Javier slowly lowering her leg to the ground before tucking himself away. Juniper took deep gulps of air as she tried to stay standing. She reached out to pat his shoulder.

"Good job." A small, breathless laugh left her as she straightened up against the tree. Javier chuckled, leaning one hand beside her head. 

"Anytime, _corazón_." He kissed her cheek softly, offering her his elbow once she'd caught her breath enough. Juniper took it, allowing him to walk her back to camp. At the border of the scout campfire, she leaned over to kiss his cheek and untangled her arm from his. He took the hint and didn't follow her as she walked to her sleeping pallet between Karen and Mary Beth. 

 

The next morning no one made a comment about her late night tryst with Javier. Even Karen seemed unaware. Juniper felt a bit of pride that she'd been able to sneak around Karen. They shared a coffee over the cooking fire, Karen chatting on about some gossip she had heard while Juniper smiled to herself in satisfaction. 

Seeing Miss Grimshaw come marching towards the girls, Juniper darted to pick up the water bucket and carry it towards the chuckwagon, trying to avoid the screeching nag of the old dame. As she was carrying buckets to the wash basin, spilling half on her skirts and soaking through to her shoes, she’d caught Arthur staring at her. More water splashed out of the basin than in, her front soaked. He was leaning against the side of the chuckwagon like he had nowhere else to be. 

“You aiming to go swimming?” He’d chuckled at her. She pulled a sour face and glanced at Kieran, still tied up to the tree behind the chuck wagon. 

“Do you really have to keep him tied up?” It was exasperating how no one was listening to her. Juniper’s temper was about to reach its limits. 

“He’s an O’Driscoll. He’s going to stay there until he talks.” Arthur growled.

“He’s nothing of the sort you stubborn fool.” She’d snarled. “You’re making a mistake.” 

“Yeah, you know that? You know that from your...” Arthur came dangerously close to discussing Juniper’s knowledge within earshot of Kieran but stopped himself. Her eyes cut to the bedraggled man then back to Arthur. 

“You got something you want to discuss with me, we can step over somewhere more private.” She suggested, aggravated and ready to argue. 

“Yeah? Like that private conversation you had with Javier last night?" Juniper scowled at him hard. She should have guessed Arthur would have noticed. 

"What I do in my own time with my own body is none of your damn business, asshole." The words hissed through clenched teeth. Arthur, surprisingly, backed down and threw his arms up in surrender. 

"I got shit to do today, I ain’t got time to be arguing with you.” He waved his hand dismissively and Juniper fought back the urge to chuck the water bucket at his head.

“Wait, are you going into town?” She dumped the bucket beside the chuck wagon and trotted after him. Before he could answer, Tilly, Mary Beth and Karen accosted him for the same reason. His will to argue wavered as the women stated their case. When he relented, they let out a whoop and Karen grabbed Juniper by the arm.

“You’re coming too, right June?” The blonde’s smile was infectious and Juniper’s annoyance at Arthur lessened. She climbed up first, the other girls following behind. Once seated, the wagon pulled off and Juniper laughed in excitement. For the moment they were quiet, Karen eyeing Juniper.

“What is it?” She finally asked.

“Well, it’s just. You’re a fortune teller, right? Do you know if we’ll find Sean?” Karen blushed a bit and Juniper felt the other girls eyes on her. 

“Oh.” Karen, usually boisterous seemed a bit subdued. “Yeah, we will.” She hammed it up, closing her eyes and holding a hand to her head. “I see Sean returning to us soon and being... a loudmouth jackass.” The girls all laughed hard. For a second, Juniper thought she heard Arthur chuckle. Uncle called for a song and the rest of the ride played out as she remembered it. The runaway carriage, Arthur catching the big shire for the driver. Once in front of the Valentine stable, Juniper made a point to hang back just a bit as the girls all climbed down.

As Arthur helped Juniper down from the wagon she paused a moment, holding tight to his hand and pulling him back from the group. Leaning up to his ear, she whispered.

“One shot kid. Tilly. Karen. Jimmy Brooks. Pussy Cat. And watch out for Tommy.” She pulled back and let go of his hand, running after the other girls without looking back. Mary Beth took her by the arm when she caught up.

“You ever robbed a house?” She asked, excited.

“No, have you?” Juniper walked with the young woman.

“Oh yes, loads of times. Want me to show you?” Mary Beth was eager enough to make Juniper laugh.

“Of course! Lead the way!” With that Mary Beth dragged Juniper off towards a large house just outside the Main Street of town.

With the ease of knowing what she was doing, Mary Beth walked right in. Juniper trailed behind, pretending to be busy with housework if someone walked too near. Money squirreled away in drawers vanished into their pockets and Mary Beth showed her how some houses kept money hidden in the flour jar. By the time they were done, Juniper figured she had enough money for clothes at least. She’d have to find a fence to sell the gold bar and jewelry she’d acquired before she could afford a nice horse but at least she’d have pants. 

“I should tell Arthur about that gossip I heard.” Mary Beth said. Juniper followed her eyes down the sidewalk to were Arthur and Uncle were sleeping in front of the general store. 

“I’m going to step in and buy some new clothes. Don’t wait up for me, I’ll find my way back.” Juniper made her excuse and slipped free of the friendly hold Mary Beth had on her. She really liked that girl, Juniper thought, as she slipped into the store.

 

Feeling a multitude better in pants, Juniper sat her new western hat down on her head and stepped outside. The brim did wonders for keep the sun out of her eyes. It was a relief to feel a little bit like her old self again. She’d never been one for regular skirt wearing though there were obvious advantages. By the time she looked around, a large crowd had already gathered. In the center the sounds of a heated fight rose into the sky and she laughed to herself. Her timing was just about perfect. Slipping around the outside of the crowd, Juniper leaned against a wall close to the water barrel. Waiting patiently, she tried hard not to look at Arthur as he splashed water in his face. Mud caked his side and he was already sporting a black eye. For a long moment he leaned heavily on the barrel, watching Juniper as she tried to ignore him.

"New clothes suit you." Arthur said as he wiped water and mud from his face. She looked over at him. "And you got a new hat." Juniper grinned, preening a bit. He looked over his shoulder to where he'd been fighting then back at her. 

“You’re for real, ain’t you?” He finally said. Juniper’s shoulders sagged in relief. Nodding, she stood up from the wall. “You from the future?”

“Yes, but no? This isn’t even actually the past. It’s a...” She realized he wouldn’t understand if she said ‘video game’. “Story. My favorite story. But it’s got a sad ending, no matter how many times I reread it it’s the same sad ending. So this is all, a dream I guess?” 

“Jesus, that sounds insane.” Arthur scoffed. He stood straight and whistled for his horse, wiping water from his face again.

“But being from the future doesn’t?” Juniper looked over at him. His shoulders shrugged in agreement. “This is some dream, I’m laid up in a hospital somewhere half dead. Either I wake up or...die I guess.” Juniper threw her shoulders back and stepped off the sidewalk. “I tell you what though,” She looked back at Arthur. “I’m getting my damn happy ending this time. I’m going to save everyone.” Arthur eyed her.

“You’re not going to help anyone without a horse.” He laughed a bit as his horse trotted up to him. Juniper sighed in agreement. 

“Yeah I know, I got some stuff to sell to a fence. It’ll be plenty for a halfway decent horse. Can you give me a ride out to Emerald Ranch?” Juniper watched as Arthur patted the neck of his mahogany bay. "No, wait, the fence isn't there yet. Damn. Van Horn I guess, then. Unless you want to head into Saint Denis, which I do not." 

“Van Horn? That's a bit of a ride.” He glanced in the general direction as if he could see it.

“Nearest fence.” She said, it wasn’t like she had a lot of options. Arthur took a long moment to think.

“You ain’t got a gun neither, do you?” He mostly was asking himself. “Yeah okay, I got some things I can sell too. You don’t mind sleeping rough for a night? There and back, it’ll take ‘till tomorrow at least.” With the ease of practice, Arthur swung up onto his horse in a slick, graceful manner. 

“How exactly am I not already sleeping rough?” Juniper complained, grabbing his offered arm to scramble up behind him. Arthur laughed in agreement and began trotting out of Valentine. She had to grab hold of his waist real quick to keep her seat. A thrill ran through her to be so close to Arthur. Even through the layers of clothing she could feel how hardened his muscles were. It took every ounce of self control for her to keep her hands from straying too far south.

"What's your horses name?" She asked idly as they rode through Twin Stacks Pass.

"Bourbon." He said. It gave her pause. So this was her Arthur then. Suddenly she was thankful she'd never managed to play him as low honor. 

"A good name." Was all she said.

"Yeah, he seems to like it." He joked. As the horse crested the hill, an expanse of the Heartlands spreading out below them. It was even more breathtaking in real life. An unspoiled splendor Juniper had never really seen before, not in person.

They stopped to camp in an open field once evening began to set in. Arthur had a modest camp set up before Juniper even untied her bedroll. She stretched out on her back, looking up at the stars painted across the sky. A little tinged with guilt, she knew she should be helping him but she couldn't tear her eyes away.

"You alright? You look like you've never seen the stars before." His voice broke the spell and Juniper looked over at him.

"Well, not like this. I grew up in a town. Can't see stars like this near town." She explained, sitting up. Arthur was already holding some piece of meat over the fire. It sizzled and everytime a bit of fat dripped into the flames it hissed and spit. 

“How much about me do you know?” He asked, glancing at her over the fire. Juniper thought for a long moment, staring into the sky again before letting out a small sigh.

“Not much before Blackwater, the story starts in Colter so everything past that. But before that? You early life? Mostly a mystery.” She admitted. Arthur nodded, still watching her. “I know your mother died when you were young, and your father was abusive and died after getting caught by the police. You had a dog named Copper that used to take baths with you.” As she mentioned Copper, Arthur laughed a little to himself. “Dutch and Hosea picked you up when you were about fifteen and taught you the finer points of being an outlaw.”

“I suppose that’s the basics.” He said after she fell silent. “What about you?” Juniper pulled back like she hadn’t thought about that.

“What about me?” She hadn’t thought Arthur would care to ask.

“Don’t seem fair to me, you knowing so much about me and me not knowing anything about you.” He complained. Sometimes Juniper wondered how something she was certain was only a dream could feel so real. “Like that ring on your finger, it’s real fancy looking. You married to a rich man?” As he spoke her eyes drifted down to the band encircling her finger.

“Oh. Is that why you keep calling me Mrs?” He nodded. “Well no, not anymore.” With little pretext she tugged it off her finger and held it up to glint in the firelight. “Together ten years and six months ago he just says ‘I don’t love you anymore.’ Now I’m left wondering if I ever loved him at all.”

“Surely you did if you married him.” Arthur argued but she wasn’t sure why he cared so much.

“I don’t know. We liked each other well enough, still do really. But he was my ticket out of a small town. I grew up in a shitty little town seeing everyone I know never leave, never do better, never change. I didn't want that. Spent all my spare time with my friends drinking, fighting and just generally being a shit kicker. Guess I was just distracting myself."

"So when he asked me to marry him, to go with him across the country I said yes. Leapt at the chance, live somewhere exciting that I’d only read about in books. California.” She spread her hands out in a showy flourish. A melancholy filled her chest as she thought about it.  
"So we move, I leave everyone and everything I knew behind to start a new life across the country. He says he wants kids, so I get pregnant. And it turns out I kind of love being a mom. I stop drinking, read up on childcare. But it was lonely, my kid's great but it doesn't replace having someone my own age to talk to. And my husband, he just pulls away from me, buries himself in work. Then he comes to me one day, says I'm not the person he fell in love with. Now I realize I just left one life I didn’t like for a completely different life I didn’t like.” Her eyes glanced to see Arthur listening closely. “I miss drinking with my friends. I miss fighting too, used to win most of them.” That thought made her smile a bit. Arthur gave a soft laugh.

“Yeah, Charles was telling me how good a punch you can throw.” She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye.

“He say anything else?” It sounded suspicious when she said it so she couldn’t blame Arthur when he eyed her and took a while to answer.

“No...” He drew the word out and Juniper didn't quite believe him. Sighing, she let it go. 

"I’m just not able to be happy with my life, I guess. It’s a perfectly fine life, it’s just not the one I want.” She looked away from the stars.

“Damn, I guess I’ve spent my entire life pining for something I couldn’t have. Kind of pathetic.” She looked at the ring in her hand again. “Don’t know why I kept wearing the ring.” 

“What kind of life would you want, then?” He asked, tearing her out of her head. 

“I don't know." She sighed heavy, her shoulders sagging. "I just know I'm not happy where I am." The ring in her hand felt too heavy in her palm. In a small fit of anger, she was unsure at who, Juniper flung the ring into the darkness surrounding the campfire. Arthur made a small checked sound.

“We could have pawned it.” He complained with a whine. Juniper shook her head, laughing at him. 

“So now you know, Arthur. I’m just a pathetic person who has never been happy, despite having a very nice life. I keep distracting myself, hoping maybe one day I won’t be useless. Yet here I am, mid thirties, one kid, one divorce and in a coma.”

“Don’t think you’re pathetic.” Arthur argued, his voice low and soft. “If I had to live a different life I’d probably be miserable. Things aren’t so great now, what with the Pinkertons and all but before Blackwater. When I was riding with Dutch and Hosea and John, it was heaven for me. We really did used to help people.”

“Like Robin Hood.” Juniper said. Arthur smiled and nodded, looking away from her to the fire. 

“Yeah.” A silence stretched between them and Juniper didn’t mind it so much. 

“You know, maybe this is a good thing.” Arthur said after a long minute. “I know you’re griping on about a coma and all and, don't get me wrong, that’s some awful stuff. But if you’re here then you’re not dead yet, maybe it’s a turning point. Not married to someone you don’t love, have a great kid to take with you. No one’s going to fault you for changing your life after you leave the hospital. Maybe all this,” he motioned to the world around. “Is so you can think things out? Figure out what you want to do, where you need to go to be happy.” 

“My brain giving me a chance to sort things out?” She clarified and Arthur nodded.

“Yeah, maybe like a vacation. Although, I have to say you have a hell of an idea of what constitutes a vacation.”

“I do seem to be having fun.” Juniper gave a small laugh. He handed over a piece of the meat he'd been cooking. Juniper took it, chewing it over while laying back down. Looking up at the beauty above her, she felt a little content. Arthur spoke suddenly, pulling her back from the brink of sleep. 

"So, this story?" Arthur said. Juniper snapped to attention and looked over at him. "Who's your favorite character?" She smirked at the question. "You seem real close with Charles." Was that a hint of jealousy in his voice? 

"Mmm," She made a non committal sound before laughing. "Charles is great, but he's not my favorite. Second favorite though, for sure."

"Javier? Ladies love him." She wasn't sure what he was getting at but seeing him sound a tiny but jealous was making her laugh.

"Oh no, definitely not Javier." Juniper burst out laughing. "Are you just naming people you think I've slept with?" When she looked over he was blushing up to his ears. He distracted himself by pulling out a pack of cigarettes. Taking a second thought, he offered one to her. Juniper sat up and took the offering, lighting the cigarette on the dying embers of the fire. 

"I, no. I just," He was flustered and it was a cute look on him, Juniper thought. "You seem very at ease around men." He danced around what he meant and Juniper appreciated his attempting to be tactful. She decided to be merciful and talk about it for him. 

"Maybe I am a bit more forward than you're used to." She shrugged. "To be fair, I'm a bit forward for my own time too. But whatever, I'm used to being called names anyways." Juniper took a drag, blowing smoke away from the campfire. "Scares some guys but I have my fun. Besides, I have found generally, in my experience, if I sleep with a guy suddenly he's a lot nicer. Willing to do more for me." She flicked ash from the tip of the cigarette. "Things are different for women, Arthur. Sometimes using your body as a weapon is the best choice."

"That why you sleep around?" His tone was even, Juniper glanced over at him to try and read his face but he wasn't looking at her. 

"No, not the only reason at least. I really like having sex." She laughed at herself. "And you gang seems to have a high number of attractive and willing men." It made her nervous to talk to Arthur about this, she wanted him to like her but her own impulsive behavior had always been a problem. Taking another drag on the cigarette, she shook her hand out nervously. 

"And I'm suddenly in a situation where I'll probably need protecting. Ain't a world I'm used to. Ain't a safe world, Arthur and I'm suddenly having to make it up as I go." The cigarette was nearly done. She tossed the remains in the fire and curled up on the bedroll. Arthur didn't say anything else.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't expect a sex scene every chapter, just most of them.


	4. Chapter 4

The next morning, Arthur woke Juniper with a nudge of his boot. She grumbled, shielding her eyes from the morning sun. He had already extinguished the fire and packed up his kit. She rubbed at her face a bit, trying to dispel the fuzzy feel of sleep. A cup of hastily brewed coffee was shoved in her hand. The grounds still in it felt gritty on her tongue but coffee was coffee. 

"God I miss Starbucks." Juniper grumbled. Downing the rest of the strong coffee, she spit a few grounds out of her mouth and handed the cup back to Arthur. "Thank you." She mumbled as she picked up her hat and climbed to her feet. 

"What's starbucks?" Arthur asked. He put the tin cup away and climbed up on Bourbon. Juniper sighed as she climbed up behind him.

"A coffee shop. Imagine coffee but 90% milk and sugar. I miss _that_ the most right now. Not hot showers, not internet, no. I miss my goddamned coffee milkshake." She hunched on the horse while Arthur laughed at her. 

"You are not a morning person." His voice rumbled as she slumped against his back. 

"Not when it has to start so fucking early." She snarled in response. Arthur only laughed a little harder before turning the bay down the road. They turned into the trees shortly after, morning light shining bright through the canopy above them. Juniper seemed to be waking up more, sitting up straighter now at least. She kept her eyes scanning the road ahead and behind as they road and Arthur shifted uncomfortably in his saddle. 

"Would you calm down? You're twitching like a squirrel on cocaine." He looked over his shoulder at her.

"Sorry, I just... this is Murfree Brood country." Juniper forced herself to sit still. Arthur gave a small nod.

"After you unload what you got, what are you going to buy?" He clucked to the horse and it picked up it's pace a step. 

"A horse to start, but the stable outside of Van Horn won't have any horses yet so I'll have to head to the stable in Valentine." Her voice trailed off as she thought for a moment. 

"What about a gun?" Arthur asked, interrupting her train of thought. Juniper startled a little.

"Of course I'll need a gun." She muttered to herself. "Schofield isn't available until after Micha except for..." 

"Schofield? You know guns enough to have a preference? Didn't take you for a shootist." He seemed mildly impressed.

"Well, I know _these_ guns." Juniper smirked. "How would you feel about helping me get a nice gun and shooting some O'Driscolls?" 

 

They rode into Van Horn by early afternoon. Bourbon snorted and tossed his head as Arthur pulled him to a slow walk through the grimey town. The town felt more hostile than Juniper remembered, or maybe she had just never noticed. Eyes followed them as the horse pulled up at the docks and the two riders dismounted. Arthur seemed to notice too, his posture getting even stiffer if that was possible. He seemed to make a point of walking behind Juniper, only an arms length away. 

The fence at the end of the dock greeted them with the familiar greeting, happy to give her money for items of less than legitimate origin. Arthur stood back by the doorway, his arms crossed and a heavy scowl on his face. Once she was done, her pockets heavy with a good chunk of change, he actually held the door open for her. 

Juniper had never been one to really care about chivalry one way or the other, but when Arthur Morgan held a door open for her it made her heart flutter just a bit. Smiling to herself, she glanced back at him. He was still maintaining the severe look on his face.

Back at his horse, Juniper paused and thought for a moment. Her eyes slipped to the Van Horn saloon then back to Arthur.

“Maybe we want a drink before the road?” She asked. Arthur was already half in the saddle when she asked but looked over at the saloon too. He took a moment to think then shrugged.

“Sure, why not. You’re buying though.” With a heavy thud he dropped down to the ground. “Also would you do me a favor and not be so damn obvious you just got a whole bunch of money?” He snarled, glancing down at her hands. Juniper shoved her hands into her pockets, leaving the wad of cash in it. 

“I don’t have a satchel or anything. What else am I supposed to do with it?” She asked. Arthur eyed her as they crossed the street. 

“Seems you have a laundry list of items to buy.” He joked, holding the door open for her. Slipping inside, it took a minute for her eyes to adjust to the dim light. Sideling up to the bar, she raised a hand for attention and ordered two beers for them. They knocked them together before each taking a deep pull from the bottle. 

“Is it just me or is Van Horn not a particularly friendly town.” Juniper said to Arthur, under her breath. Arthur shrugged but she caught the way he scanned the room with his eyes, as if looking for a threat. 

“You’d know more than me.” He smirked as he said and Juniper wanted to swat at him but restrained herself. 

“It’s not like I was expecting.” She turned to lean back against the bar. 

“Is it usually how you expect?” Arthur seemed almost done with his beer and Juniper hurried to keep up with him. 

“Usually. Usually it’s like looking at a painting you’ve seen a thousand times before.” She set the empty bottle on the bar and Arthur followed suit. 

“Wonder what’s changed.” Arthur murmured as he walked out of the bar. Juniper hurried to keep up.

"Back to Valentine?" He asked as they mounted. Juniper nodded.

"They have the best horses right now." She explained. Arthur nodded.

"A good horse is important." He agreed, leaning forward to pat Bourbon's neck. "But you strike me as the kind of person who's going to need a gun to back up their mouth." He ribbed her as they left Van Horn, leaving the tense feeling behind along with it. "You going to have enough money for a gun too? Horses can be expensive."

"Arthur," Juniper reached forward to lay a hand on his free arm as it dangled. "I know this story like the back of my hand. I know where every buried treasure and vulnerable homestead is from here to New Austin. Money is _not_ a problem for me." He went stiff as she touched his arm, moving it to hold the reins. Juniper pulled back. 

"You even know how to shoot a gun?" Arthur asked, gruffer than before. She raised an eyebrow at his tone but didn't mention it.

"I know a little, I've shot one a few times before but I'm not exactly an expert, no." He sighed at her answer, as if he had been expecting that. "Look, it's not that hard. Point it at who you want to die and pull the trigger."

"I think you and Sean would get along." The snort that left Juniper at that accusation made Arthur laugh. 

"Not that I'm not fond of the mouthy Irish bastard, but he is a shit shot. I'm sure with a little practice I could be halfway decent." 

"Oh so you have met him." The mirth was back in Arthur's voice. 

Around them, light was dying. Less and less was filtering through the leaves above them until Arthur pulled Bourbon up. He gave a sigh and twisted in his seat to look at Juniper.

"We gotta camp for the night." It was almost apologetic. Juniper scowled, but there was no way of denying it'd soon be too dark to continue on. Rolling her shoulders, she nodded.

"Yeah, of course." She slipped off the back of the horse and followed close as Arthur walked off the road to a small clearing. He dismounted, moving quick to get a fire going while Juniper stumbled around in the dim dusk light gathering firewood. Once the fire was blazing up, they rolled out their bedrolls. It was a cool night but didn't warrant a tent. Crouching in front of the fire, Juniper held her hands out close to the flames letting the heat warm her fingers. 

Arthur was humming some campfire song as he sliced off pieces of meat for the two of them. As nervous as the area made her, it was a pleasant night. While they ate, she felt some of her tension leave her.

"I'm hitting the sack." Arthur said, spitting a bit of gristle into the fire. He stretched out, pulling his hat off his head and resting it on his face as he leaned back. "You should too, might cut back on the cussing out of you in the morning." 

"I'll stop cussing when I'm dead." Juniper joked, earning a small breath of a laugh out of Arthur. 

Staring into the fire was a calming. She couldn't see the stars from their campsite but it was still a nice night. A soft breath left her as she relaxed back on her arms. The quiet calm of the fire was interrupted when a hand slipped around her mouth and her arms were pinned to her side. The hands holding her started dragging her back from the fire and she struggled as hard as she could. Throwing her head back, she managed to crack one of her abductors in the nose but the hand around her mouth didn't move. A rope was pulled tight around her throat, cutting off most of her air. 

"Oh, you're nice looking for a girl who wears pants." A creaky voice whispered in her ear. The smell of rotten teeth was overwhelming and she felt her stomach heave at the scent. Rough, scratchy rope tied her hands behind her back. Thrown to the ground, Juniper was dragged by her feet towards a horse. One of her attackers, holding a lantern now, picked up the rope around her neck and started to tie it to his horse. 

"We should be more careful with this one." One of the two men whispered hoarsely at the other. "A pretty face like that could be nice to keep around." The other nodded slowly, dropping the rope and choosing instead to toss Juniper over the rump of their horse. As she struggled, the rope loosened a bit and allowed her to wheeze in a decent breath. 

"Alright you inbred, backwoods hillbilly, The Hills Have Eyes mother fuckers. Untie me!" She bellowed, kicking her legs out at the man as he dropped her hard on the horses flank. One foot managed to connect and he fell back. Swinging her legs, Juniper managed to slid off the horse and hit the dirt hard without her hands to catch her. 

"Juniper!" Arthur's yell carried through the trees. "June!" 

"Arthur!" She called back only for the Murfree she'd kicked to land a bony fist into her jaw. Lights exploded behind her eyes and she took a moment to shake sense back into her brain. Gunshots fired off rapid fire and very close to her, making Juniper flinch away despite still not being able to see clearly.

The man next to her fell away from her, landing with a wet thud in the dirt. The other attacker gave a cry and fell silent. As her eyes cleared, she could see Arthur running up. The lantern light glinted on his outdrawn gun. 

"Are you alright?" He asked as he quickly holstered his gun and reached out to help her to her feet. 

"Yeah." Juniper said, a little sullen. Once Arthur sliced the ropes off, she rubbed at her sore wrists. It took a solid moment, but her sense returned fully and she realized that Arthur still held a hand on her upper arm. He seemed to realize it at the same time and awkwardly let go. Shaking her head at his reaction, she looked down at the man who had been dragging her and let a kick fly into his gut. The horse he'd been prepared to ride her off on snorted and stomped next to her. 

"Hey, free horse." Juniper said as she turned to the animal. Arthur’s face screwed up in confusion at her sudden change of focus. The horse stood placidly, despite the gunshots and corpses around it. Scarred and matted, it was a pitiful looking creature but turned its head to look at Juniper as she stepped over the Murfree Brood to pat it's neck.

"Oh, you don't want that thing. It's libel to keel over before we make it back to Valentine." Arthur argued as she grabbed it's reins and started walking it towards their campfire. 

"Then we'll be no worse off than we were before." Her retort stopped his complaints.

Close to the firelight, the old mare looked even worse. Her fur was rubbed off in a few places and several cuts along her neck had scarred over badly. Thick, heavy mats hung in her mane and tail but still she stood calmly as Juniper looked her over. Arthur sat back down on his bedroll, shaking his hand out in a nervous tick. He watched her fuss over the poor beast for a long while before she was satisfied and sat down. 

"It's a Nokota." Juniper said as she sat down. Her hat had fallen to the side when the Murfree had grabbed her. "She'll be pretty fast once I fatten her up a little." Picking up her hat, she looked over the brim. "Guess my big mouth saved my ass this time, huh Arthur?"

"Shut up." He snarled, obviously still on edge.

"I told you this was Murfree Brood country." Juniper's own heart was still racing even if she didn't want to admit it. Her words were a little sharper than she had intended, making Arthur snap his eyes onto her. Scowling she looked away, trying to slow her heartbeat. There was a tense silence as the fire crackled.

"I know." Arthur said with a heavy sigh. "You sure you're alright?" His tone had softened. 

"Yeah, just going to be sleeping with one eye open for a while I guess." With that, she laid down. Setting her hat beside her, she curled up in her bedroll with her backs to the flames and Arthur. As she finally drifted off to sleep, she realized that had been the first time Arthur had called her June. 

 

The next morning, Juniper woke up without Arthur nudging her awake. Opening her eyes to the woods before her, she realized she was warmer than she’d been when she’d fallen asleep. Arthur’s gunslinger coat was tossed over her shoulders. Taking the moment to not wake up, she pulled the coat closer around her and breathed in his scent. 

It was the smell leather and horseflesh mingled around gunpowder and she didn’t know why but she loved it. For a long quiet moment, all she could hear was Arthur shuffling around the calls of birds in the trees. His boots crunched closer and paused for a moment before walking off. Juniper finally sat up, seeing he had set a cup of coffee in front of her. She took the bitter drink and tossed it back like a whiskey shot. Standing up, the coat fell from her shoulders and she had to bend to pick it up. For a long moment, she studied the coat. It was just as she remembered it, even the frayed parts. 

“Can I have that back?” Arthur reached out, waiting for his coat to be returned. Juniper startled herself out of her thoughts and handed it back along with his cup.

“Sorry.” She mumbled as she looked around to get her bearings. The campfire had already been banked and extinguished and they looked about ready to go. The battered horse she’d claimed from the Murfree stood placidly next to Arthur and his bay. She moved to mount the horse, Arthur watching her as she swung into the saddle.

“You really think that poor creature is going to be able to carry you back to Valentine? Might be more merciful to just shoot it.” He grumbled as he mounted up. Juniper shook her head no, patting the horses neck. The mare pushed back against the gentle touch and gave a small huff. 

“No, you’ll see. She’s a reliable sort.” As if agreeing with her, the horse pawed at the ground. Arthur shook his head with a laugh.

They rode out of the woods, plains opening up before them with sweeping swaths of green. In the distance a cluster of riders dotted the top of a hill. Juniper pulled her horse up, Arthur took a moment to realize she had stopped but turned to look at her when he realized it. 

“What is it?” He asked, the concern on her face plain to read.

“Can I borrow your binoculars?” She held out her hand, not taking her eyes of the riders in the distance. Arthur grumbled a bit but handed them over. Through the lenses, Juniper sucked in a breath in annoyance. A sour turn to her lips sprung up as she handed the binoculars back.

“Those are bounty hunters, I recognize the horses.” She told him finally. “How much of a bounty do you have on your head?” Arthur looked surprised, startled almost by the question.

“I, I don’t know.” He finally admitted. Squinting against the bright morning sun, Juniper sighed. 

“We get any further out from the tree line and they’ll see us.” She looked back over her shoulder to the woods then back to the bounty hunters. Arthur was already pulling his cattleman from it’s holster. After a second thought, he handed it to Juniper. She took it, surprised by it’s heft. 

“You know a way around them?” He asked, his eyes trained on them now too. Juniper was surprised he was deferring to her but accepted it. 

“Not unless we go way out of our way.” Arthur let out a slow breath as she answered. Pulling out his rifle from the saddle holster, he loaded the chamber and looked over at her. 

“Stay back here.” The growl in his voice rumbled low. Juniper gave a short mirthless laugh.

“No way in hell, buddy.” Raising the revolver up, she pulled the hammer back with her thumb. Arthur glared at her but rolled his shoulder and kicked his horse into a flat gallop towards the bounty hunters. Juniper did the same, her Nokota give a small whinny as it broke into a pace that matched Arthur. 

As they neared the bounty hunters, Arthur brought his rifle up to aim but Juniper already had her gun at the ready. For a moment, time seemed to slow. A Loud rushing in her ears drowned out every other noise. The gun seemed to have a mind of its own, aiming almost of its own accord at each bounty hunter in turn. Three times she pulled the trigger and three men fell dead off their horses. The rushing in her ears died and timed returned to normal. Arthur hadn’t even gotten a shot off yet. 

The horses pulled up from their run and Arthur stared, mouth open at Juniper. She was surprised herself, taking a moment to lower the gun and take in the corpses. A second of silence and she gave a loud whoop. Arthur yelled at her.

“What the hell was that?” He quickly holster the rifle and stared at Juniper. “Why are you yelling?” 

“I have dead eye and auto aim!” She shrieked at him. He clearly didn’t understand what she was saying, confusion clouding his face for a moment.

“You’re a dead eye alright, shit you shoot as good as me. I thought you said you didn’t know how to shoot.” For a moment he was almost angry but it faded away to amazement. “We _have_ to get you a gun.” Kicking the horse a little, Bourbon started out at an easy lope past the fallen men and Juniper followed behind.

Twin Stacks Pass loomed in the distance, pronghorns darting off as they passed. Arthur had been mostly silent while the rode. Juniper was too busy being excited over her new found skill. A feeling of invincibility was quickly overtaking her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I didn’t think anyone would like this


	5. Chapter 5

Valentine showed itself in the distance, closing in quickly. The little Nokota under her even dared to prance a little as they neared the stable. Arthur hitched his horse outside the general store while Juniper headed into the stable.

“I’ll meet you at the gun shop.” She told him as she turned the small horse into the double doors. Inside, the hostler showed her the horseflesh for sale while a stable hand groomed the poor horse she’d brought in. Eyeing the Dutch Warmblood, Juniper handed over the money for the mare but requested the Nokota be saddled up.

Cleaned up and afforded a new haircut, the creature was less pathetic. Juniper slipped it a peppermint before leading it down the Valentine main drag toward the gun shop.

“I’ll admit, it looks better now.” Arthur called out as she neared the store. “Did you name it?” 

“Her name is Bulletface.” Juniper said as she wrapped the reins around the hitching post. Taking the steps two at a time, she smiled at him before ducking inside. Arthur shook his head, tossing his spent cigarette into the mud. 

Inside, Juniper peered through the glass cases for a moment before going through the catalogue. She bought a Springfield rifle, modified and slung it over her back. 

“What about a hand gun?” Arthur reminded her. Juniper shook her head and stepped out of the shop before answering.

“I want the Schofield and they ain’t got it.” She said to him out of the corner of her mouth. Her eyes looked around only to still on the doctor’s office. “But he does. In the back with some O’Driscolls. There’s time enough to get in, kill them all, take the money and grab the gun but we’ll have to shoot our way out, no back way out.” He smirked as she ran of the details of what she wanted to do. 

“How about you stay out here with the horses then. I go get the gun, shoot my way out and we beat feet outta here.” He crossed his arms, watching the doctor’s office. 

“Seems like a lot for you to put yourself through for my gun.” She said, regretting her suggestion. The cattleman the salesman had would work just fine. 

“You’re the one who won’t use no other gun.” He argued. Juniper sighed.

“You’re right, I’ll just wait until he gets a Schofield in.” Arthur’s hand shot out to stop her from moving.

“I didn’t say it was a bad thing. Let me keep the money I find and it’ll be even.” He watched her as Juniper paused.

“Fine, but I’m gonna feel guilty if you get shot.” She bargained. Arthur just shrugged and started walking across the street. Juniper hurried gather up Bourbon’s reins and mount Bulletface. 

In less than five minutes there were already bullets firing across the street as Arthur ran out. Jumping onto his bay, the two of them took off running from the town. Juniper took the lead, Arthur following her as she raced away into Amberino. 

She was laughing as they pulled up and stopped, looking out over Cumberland Falls. Arthur dismounted for a minute, crouching by the river to fill his canteen and take a swig. 

“You okay?” Juniper asked. Her face went cold as she tried to see any injuries. Arthur shook out his hands as he stood up and replaced his canteen back in his satchel.

“Sure, no extra holes today.” Walking over to her, he pulled a well maintained Schofield out and handed it to her. “Got your gun.” His smirk gave her her breath back and Juniper took the gun.

“You get the money.” She asked as she looked the new sidearm over. 

“Of course I did.” He said, mock indignation in his voice. “How stupid do you think I am?” Climbing up onto his horse again, he turned, taking the lead now since the posse had left off chasing them. “You were right about your horse.” Juniper turned her head sharply when he said that. “She’s fast and apparently sturdy enough to handle Murfree Brood. Just...the name. Juniper, Bulletface?” Juniper only laughed in response.

They turned their horses and began walking back towards camp. It was a comfortable silence between them, something Juniper didn’t experience very often. She began whistling a tune as the turned off the main road leading away from Valentine and Arthur pulled up short, stopping to stare at her.

“What?” Juniper asked, pulling Bulletface up under his scrutiny.

“That song, you sang it in camp before.” He asked, his eyes hidden by his hat. Juniper felt a blush rise, hot, on her cheeks. “That song from your time?”

“Well, yeah. I guess.” She watched Arthur for a long minute before he started riding off. 

“It’s a nice song. You should sing more in camp.” He said it as if it were just regular chat but Juniper felt a swell in her chest as she watched his back. 

“It’s not that good, you just don’t know it.” She deflected, averting her eyes when she realized she was staring him down. 

Back at camp, Juniper let Bulletface mingle with the other horses. A small bit of pleasure filled her when she saw her little horse sniffing friendly with Old Boy. Karen peaked around John’s tent, hurriedly walking over. Before Arthur could say anything more to Juniper, the woman grabbed her arm and dragged her off. Tilly and Mary Beth appeared out of nowhere while Karen continued to drag Juniper off. In the distance, she could see Abigail trying to walk over without drawing attention.

Just outside of camp, in the trees past the girls sleeping tent, Karen released Juniper’s arm. The girls talked over each other so much Juniper couldn’t understand them. Abigail reached them and held her hands up to silence them.

“Quiet, she can’t her herself think.” Abigail shushed them again then looked to Juniper. “You were gone awhile with Arthur.” She said, a smirk on her face. “What did ya’ll get up to?” All eyes were on her. Juniper couldn’t help it when laughter burst out of her.

“I got a new horse,” She motioned towards the horses beside the scout campfire. Bulletface stood out amongst the well cared for horses. “And a gun.” Juniper held up the Schofield. “Need a holster for it.” 

“You mean you didn’t try anything with Arthur?” Karen sounded disappointed. She crossed her arms. “I was sure you would.” 

“Well, I’m sorry to disappoint, Karen.” Juniper smirked at her. “He doesn’t exactly seem interested.” She leaned to the side to look around the girls and caught sight of Arthur carrying a sack of food to the chuckwagon. 

“Oh he is.” Tilly laughed. 

“I feel like I could make a strong argument to the negative.” Juniper joked. “Nothing happened while we were gone.”

“It’s Arthur, he never seems interested.” Abigail sighed. The other women seemed disappointed but quickly scattered when Miss Grimshaw’s voice carried through the camp.

Juniper caught Abigail’s arm before she could leave. She began walking through camp with the woman. Leaning in conspiratorially, Juniper whispered.

“I was thinking. I could watch Jack for you occasionally, if you wanted to cut loose a little.” Abigail took a long deep breath as she thought about it. “And in return do you think you could teach me to pickpocket?” A short laugh left Abigail. 

“Are you serious?” She asked as the past in front of John’s tent. Juniper nodded.

“You’re the best thief here.” Juniper explained. Abigail smirked to herself a moment. 

“Deal.” She finally said, holding her hand out to Juniper. Grabbing it up tightly, Juniper shook her hand hard. 

As Abigail sat down to pick up her darning, Juniper glanced over at Kieran. The poor man was still tied to the tree, filthy and starving. Glancing around to see if anyone was nearby, she grabbed up a cup off the cooking table and scooped water up as she passed the barrel. He looked up as she neared, afraid. 

"Thank you, Miss." He whispered as she fed him bits of meat she'd kept in her pockets. "You are a saint."

"I ain't nothing of the sort, but I do know you're not an O'Driscoll." Raising the cup of water to his lips, she let him drink slowly. "I'm trying to get them to untie you but they're not listening."

"I know, Miss. I see you trying." He hung his head a bit and Juniper's heart broke a little to see him so defeated. 

"Keep yourself together." She whispered hoarsely, hearing steps coming through the underbrush as a guard returned from their shift. "This won't last forever." When Kieran looked back up, Juniper was quickly walking away. 

 

It was mid morning when, as she carried a bucket of water to the chuck wagon, Juniper heard Arthur and Dutch talking. The conversation seemed familiar to her but she had to think for a moment as she dumped the water pail out. Suddenly she remembered what mission that conversation preceded and she gasped with excitement. 

“Pearson, I’m going into town. I’ll grab something nice for you.” She hollered as she ran to her horse. As she was racing off towards Valentine to beat the men, Lenny dashed past her back towards camp. By the time Arthur and Lenny walked through the front door of the saloon, she’d already drank through two whiskeys and was working on a beer. 

"Arthur Morgan!" Juniper, already a little toasty. He laughed as he walked up to the bar. Lenny smiled, standing on the other side of her. "Lennnny!"

"Juuuuune!" Lenny copied her. "Seems like you've got a head start on us." She nodded, slamming back the rest of her beer.

"I am! Listen, okay, listen," She slung an arm up over Arthur's shoulder. "Listen." She leaned in to whisper in his ear. "This was my favorite part of the story but I'm changing it." Leaning back, Juniper motioned for a round of shots all around. "Arthur Morgan, I'm doing something I've always wanted to do! I challenge you to a drinking contest!" Arthur and Lenny burst into peals of laughter.

"June, I think you'll lose that challenge." Arthur smirked as she shook her head. Lenny was nearly wheezing in laughter at her. 

"Buddy, you don't know what I was like. Sure, you're bigger than me, and in better shape and I haven't actually had anything to drink in a couple years, and I'm already halfway there but I still think I can beat you." The bartender set out the shots in front of the men. 

“Are you sure?” Arthur asked, glancing between her and Lenny. Lenny only shrugged as Juniper smiled.

“Oh, I am. I am. You’re going down, old man.” Juniper laughed, tapping the shot on the counter before tossing it back a hair quicker than the men. Three more rounds in and Arthur started looking nervous as Juniper didn’t appear to get any drunker. Lenny folded, walking off as another shot was set between Arthur and Juniper. 

“Juniper, you are gonna drink yourself to death.” He laughed as he said it, picking up the shot.

“Mind your own business.” Juniper scolded him, tossing her shot back. Arthur laughed harder, throwing his back. “I’m just saying, Arthur. You do a lot for the gang but you don’t take care of yourself. You can’t fill other people’s cups if your pitcher is empty.”

“Am I supposed to take a vacation?” He slurred, slamming his shot down. 

“No, just take a damn nap occasionally. Make sure you eat enough and stop talking shit about yourself.” Juniper poked him hard in the shoulder. 

“Alright, alright.” He made a wheezy laugh as he backed into the patron standing next to him. The man angrily shoved him back. Arthur stumbled against her, nearly knocking her over. Juniper laughed, throwing her arms around him in an attempt to keep the two of them steady and upright. 

"Aw, Junie," He drawled.

"You're calling me Junie!" She was so excited by that she nearly fell over. 

"Junie, I'd protect you." He sounded almost sad and she couldn't have that. "You're just so...tiny and loud. 

"I know you would, Arthur! Where's Lenny? LENNNY!" She laughed as she looked around. Lenny came tumbling down the stairs as she spoke, sending them all into riotous laughter. “Lenny, you better head back to camp, if you don’t want to end up in jail.” His eyes went wide for a second before he burst out laughing again. 

“Sure, Junie!” He pat her shoulder as he stumbled out of the bar. Arthur whined a bit, watching his friend go.

“Junie, why’d you send him off?” 

“Because I don’t want him to go to jail and I can only keep an eye on one of you.” She started stumbling towards the stairs with him, the two leaning hard into each other.

“You were serious?” His voice almost cracked when he said serious and it made her laugh.

“Yes, you willful idiot.” As they topped the stairs, Arthur tripped and dragged her down with him to the floor. 

“Oh, Junie, I’m sorry!” His hands were on her back as she stood up, pulling him with her. When she looked up at him, his bashful smile was too much. Juniper stood on her toes to press her lips into his. Arthur froze for a second only to melt against her enthusiastically. His hands grabbed handfuls of her clothing as he crushed her against his chest, his tongue seeking hers out. Gasping away from him, Juniper looked down the hall.

“Bedroom 2a” She told him, out of breath. He glanced up, looking for the right door. Dragging her with him, he couldn’t keep his lips off her. The door swung open with a slam, only for Arthur to kick it closed as he began working on her clothes. Giggling to herself, Juniper was jerking his neckerchief away and trying to clumsily undo his buttons. 

Coming up for air again, Arthur pressed her back into the bed, he growled aggravatedly. Giving a small yell, he ripped her shirt open. The buttons flew across the room, clattering to the floor as Juniper laughed out loud. Together they worked her shirt and chemise off. His stubbled cheeks scraped against the soft skin of her breasts, wet kisses working their way up to her collar bone. Juniper’s laughter faded into soft moans as Arthur’s teeth grazed against her neck before biting down softly. Her fingers slipped off his shirt and it finally gave way only for the suspenders to stop her from pulling it off his shoulders.

“How many pieces of fucking hardware do you need to hold your pants up?” She grumbled in frustration. Arthur laughed as he pulled back, shrugging out of his suspenders.

“How do they keep pants up in the future?” He grinned down as she was tugging him towards her by the belt.

“They just buy pants that fit.” Her fingers slipped a little easier around the buckle, more familiar with that than suspenders. His eyebrows knit in confusion.

“My pants fit me.” He sounded so pitiful Juniper couldn’t help but laugh. Slipping her hands to his ass, she squeezed tightly. 

“That they do, cowboy.” Under her clumsy, drunk fingers, his gun belt fell to the ground. Arthur gave a heady sigh, climbing on top of her as she struggled with the fly of his pants. His heavy hand slipped up to her head, tangling his fingers in her hair and cradling the weight close to his head. 

“Juniper, I’ll protect you.” He mumbled as she sprung him free of his pants. Her hand wrapped around the base of his cock.

“I know, you said that.” She wasn’t thinking clearly, mind still muddled with liquor and the impressive size of Arthur growing in her palm. His calloused free hand slid down her bare waist to her pants, popping the button free with two fingers. 

“In the mountains,” His voice had gone thick and husky as she began a slow, light stroke up his length. Releasing his hold of her hair, he had to lean heavy on his hand as his breath caught. “When you said my name that first time...” Finding his motivation, Arthur dragged Juniper’s pants and drawers down her thighs to give him access to her slit. Juniper’s hand tightened at the head of his cock, her thumb sliding against the pre cum leaking from the tip. Her mouth found the curve of his jaw, kissing softly at first before her lips caressed their way down to the crook of his neck. She moaned against his skin as he talked, not listening to what he was say. Arthur pulled her off him, pushing her flat back against the bed. Juniper finally focused on him and listened.

“I wanted you to say it again. I wanted you.” He looked down at her, sincere and earnest in his drunkenness. Juniper reached up, running her fingers against the stubble on his chin.

“Arthur Morgan.” She responded with a smile. Her thumb grazed across the scars on his chin and grew confused. “How did you get these? I don’t know this one.” He chuckled.

“Hit my chin in a fight once.”

“Oh.” She lost her voice again looking up at him. His eyes glittered in the low light and Juniper couldn't help herself, pulling him to her again. “Arthur Morgan, if you don’t fuck me right now I’m going to find someone who will.” She whispered into his ear. He breathed a smile against her skin before slipping one finger inside her. Juniper rolled her head back, sighing heavily. 

“You already so wet for me.” He hummed, kissing at the base of her neck. A second finger slipped in and Arthur found her clit with his thumb. She gave a strangled cry as her arms flew around him. The kisses turned into a hard bite. Juniper slid her hand into his hair, grabbing a tight fistful. Arthur laughed softly, removing his fingers before lining himself up with her waiting body. WIth better control than someone that drunk should have, Arthur took his time sliding into her. Letting her adjust to his size, Juniper squirmed underneath him. The slow stretch felt good enough to make her moan. Once he was fully seated in her, Arthur moved one hand between them, his thumb against her clit. 

Juniper shifted her hips, her legs wrapping around his waist. He was working her more tightly wound with each stroke of his thumb. With her hips raised, he was hitting just the right spot inside. She cried out.

“Break me in half.” She snarled in his ear, her fingers digging into his scalp. Arthur raised up, pushing his hands under either of her knees and pressing her legs towards her chest. He slammed his hips into her, picking up a tempo that made the bed creak against the wall. 

The low tingle of arousal started to rise up her spine, enveloping her brain with a white hot pleasure. She gave a soft sob, as she lost herself. Arthur pulled free of her and she felt the warmth spread across her stomach as he spent himself against her skin. When her breath came easier, her vision cleared. Above her, Arthur stared down at her, a soft smile on his face. 

“Welcome back.” He joked, clumsily pulling a cloth from the night stand to wipe her stomach off. Throwing the ruined cloth away, Arthur pulled her against his chest before rolling over. Laying across his chest, Juniper let the fuzzy warmth of satisfaction wrap around her brain. One of his heavy arms stretched across her back as she drifted off to sleep.

The next morning her head was splitting. The sunlight streaming in through the curtain hurt her entire face. She rolled over, groaning and bumped into a solid, warm body in the bed next to her. Sitting up on her elbows, Juniper looked around the room at the Valentine Hotel and at the bare back of the man in bed next to her. She'd recognize those deltoids anywhere.

"Arthur?" Her voice was a croak. He stirred next to her, groaning himself as he pushed his head off the pillow to look at her.

"Juniper?" Groaning again, this time in embarrassment, Arthur hid his face in his pillow. 

"Think we both lost that challenge." She joked, sitting up and swinging her feet out of the bed. 

"I'm sorry." He moaned, sounding absolutely pathetic. Juniper couldn't help laughing, running a hand through her hair.

"Jesus, Arthur, why?" She stood, stretching herself a bit as she walked to where her things had been haphazardly thrown on the dresser. Finding a cigarette in the pocket of Arthur's pants, she struck a match and lit it. "What I remember was pretty damn good." Shaking the match out, she tossed it out the cracked window. 

"But, I took advantage of you." He sat up, the rumpled sheets covering his legs.

"Oh honey," Juniper leaned back against the dresser. "I got you liquored up. I sent Lenny home. Pretty sure I took advantage of you." Arthur looked like he'd been slapped by the idea. 

"Why, then?" His eyes traveled the length of her still naked body. 

"You're my favorite." Juniper smirked. "Now, do you want sober sex before or after I buy you breakfast?" She took a drag from the cigarette, raising an eyebrow in question. Arthur sucked in a deep breath and thought a moment.

"Both?" 

"Right answer." Juniper smirked.


	6. Chapter 6

She flicked the ash from her dying cigarette into the ashtry on the dresser. A small column of smoke rose up as she stubbed it out. In front of her, Arthur Morgan sat up in their hotel bed, watching her. He seemed mostly confused but the tent under the blanket thrown across his lap showed he was at least a little bit interested. 

"Do you not get hangovers?" Arthur complained as she smiled down at him. Juniper shrugged as she slinked back into the bed. On her hands and knees she slowly climbed over Arthur until she straddled him. 

"Not really, no. A bit of a headache but that's about it." As she sat back on her knees, Arthur's hands came up to grip her waist. "I'm basically made for drinking too much." Her hands slipped beneath the sheets to find his half hard member stirring. Arthur took a deep breath as her fingers wrapped around the soft shaft. 

"Well, I regret I might not have been at my best last night." He stumbled over his words a bit, letting out a soft groan as Juniper began to slide her hand up and down. 

"Well, lucky you." She pulled the sheets back to expose him and moved to crouch. "We get another go." With ease, she slipped her lips around the still partially soft cock, and buried her nose in the curly hair at the base. Feeling it grow in her mouth, Juniper let a small moan out as it hit the back of her throat. Arthur's hand rested gently on the back of her head. She reached up and covered his hand with hers, showing him how hard to grab. He got the message, grabbing a tight fistful of her hair. For a moment she worked his cock, letting her tongue swirl up it as she pulled off for air. Arthur's hand in her hair pulled her back so he could crush his lips to hers. 

His tongue sought out hers, slipping against as she parted her lips for him. The hand at her hip slid down, along her thigh before slipping in between her legs and finding its way up to her warm core. The hand holding her hair jerked back, their lips shiny and flushed. 

“Jesus, you’re already wet.” Arthur’s voice was husky with lust. 

“Pull my hair and choke me a little and I’m putty in your hands.” Juniper smirked at him. The hand he had twined in her hair let go only to wrap around her throat, squeezing just a bit. 

“Choke you huh?” His tone turned playful as he pushed her back by the throat. Juniper let him twist them on the bed until he was above her, his massive hand still spanning the breadth of her throat. With his other hand, he moved to one thigh. Pulling it up, he let the hand cock back and slapped at the exposed skin. The stinging pain made her squirm, a familiar tingling warmth spreading out from her core. “You like it when I’m rough? Want me to get rough?” He leaned close to hoarsely whisper the words in her ear. A low whine left Juniper, her hands wrapping around the wrist of his hand holding the throat. 

“Yes, god yes.” It was breathy and hurried as she said it, almost desperate. The head of his cock, hard and straining, was pressed to her wet hole. Keeping a decent grip on her throat, Arthur squeezed tight as he slammed his hips against her ass. Fully seated in her, his hips bucked against her as Juniper gave a strangled cry. Not waiting for her to adjust to his girth, Arthur began pounding into her without mercy. 

As the edges of her vision started to grow fuzzy, Juniper softly tapped his arm twice. Arthur understood and released her neck, allowing her to gasp for air and fill her lungs. Nodding an okay to him once she was satisfied with the air she’d gotten, Juniper was happy to feel Arthur squeeze again. 

He pulled her legs forward, resting them against one shoulder as he leaned back a small bit. Finding the angle that made Juniper squeal every time he thrust his hips forward, Arthur laughed a little to himself. Pulling back with his open hand, he let another slap fly against the bare skin exposed by her hiked up legs. He could already see the bruise forming on her ass. 

“You’re a dirty thing, aren’t you?” He muttered as he slammed his hips into her. She tapped at his arm again and Arthur let go, supporting himself with one hand on the bed. “You’d let me do anything to you, wouldn’t you?” 

“Yes,” She gasped. The feeling inside was coiling tight, building up. Air filled her lungs as sucked in air. Even without his hand on her throat it was getting hard to breathe as he nailed her into the mattress. He let another slap fly and Juniper managed loud cry as he contacted with the bruise starting to show. 

“Want me to cover you in bruises.”Her legs began trembling on his shoulder and Arthur pulled them down. She wrapped them around his waist. 

“Mark me.” Juniper mewled low. He leaned down and pressed against her, his mouth leaving wet bruises behind it as it worked its way up her neck. Obscene moans rumbled in her throat as her hands grabbed onto his hair. 

“Come on me.” He groaned into her ear. Slipping a hand between them, Arthur quickly moved his calloused fingers against her clit, wringing another sob from her. Biting down on her neck hard, he drove Juniper over the edge. Her thighs clamped tight around his waist as he fucked her through her climax. Her wall fluttered around him pulling him over the edge after her. 

Burying his shout into her shoulder, Arthur thrust up into her for a moment before pulling free and spilling himself on the sheets. They lay, frozen, for a long moment as they both gasped for air. 

Kicking the soiled sheets to the floor, Arthur rolled off of Juniper still out of breath. After a second, Juniper rolled over to rest her head against his shoulder. Arthur accommodated her, shifting his arm around her to hold her against his side. Her hand played idly in his light chest hair. 

“Was that too rough?” He asked softly as he ran his hand up and down her side. Juniper shook her head.

“No.” She said, almost asleep. “You could be rougher. You’re not going to break me, Arthur.” 

“Is Charles rough with you?” Juniper had a hard time judging his tone. Pushing herself up to see his face, she scanned his features to see how he felt.

“Are you jealous?” She asked. Arthur shrugged, trying to pull her back down to his shoulder.

“Not really, I was just wondering. I wouldn’t think Charles would be rough with a woman.” He mused. She allowed him to pull her back to his shoulder as she thought over his comment. 

“Would you want to see it?” A smirk played on her face. Arthur gave a surprised laugh. “Okay, _if_ Charles was okay with it and _if_ we could get some privacy all together, would you want to watch?” A part of her told her she was pushing it too hard but Juniper was nothing if not reckless. Arthur took a moment to think about it, which was more than Juniper expected. 

“I don’t know. Maybe.” He didn’t sound offended, more curious. Juniper relaxed a bit, letting her hand return to playing with the hair on his chest. She had nearly drifted off to sleep on him, his skin warm under her cheek, when he bumped her with his shoulder. 

“Hey, don’t fall asleep again. We gotta head back into camp. Gotta rescue Sean.” Juniper grumbled, but sat up, knowing he was right. 

“Right, gotta get Sean back.” Stumbling across the room, she fumbled into her clothes. Arthur was finished before she was, buttoning up a last button on his shirt as she fell into her pants.

“Anything I should know about Sean, Miss Fortune Teller?” He asked as he grabbed up his hat. Juniper struggled to find the right side of her shirt before pulling it on. 

“He’s a loud mouthed idiot?” She joked, finally getting clothing on. 

“Something I don’t already know?” Arthur smirked, setting her hat down on her head. 

“No, the trouble hasn’t started yet.” Juniper moved to the door, holding it open for him. 

“When will it start?” He asked, waiting for her in the hallway as she followed him through the door.

“Oh, the bullets will let you know.” She smirked up at him. 

 

“What do you mean I can’t go with them?” Juniper yelled at Dutch, moving her hands about in agitation. He had pulled her aside when Arthur had headed towards his horse. The new edict from the gang leader wasn’t sitting well with her. 

“Miss Juniper, I appreciate your enthusiasm but this is no job for someone such as yourself.” He crossed his arms, a cigar hanging from his finger. 

“You mean because I’m a woman.” She got closer to him than was polite, her eyes flashing in anger. 

“No, of course not. You’re new, I don’t know what you can do yet. Soon enough, dear.” Dutch tried to calm her down, keeping his voice low. 

“You can ask Arthur, he knows I’m a good shot. You’d trust him, wouldn’t you?” Juniper looked over her shoulder, scanning the camp for any signs of him. Arthur, though, had already ridden off. 

“I’m not sure how well I can trust his opinions sometimes. He can become...” Dutch’s eyes were trained on her neck when Juniper looked back. She realized the bruises on her neck must be showing. “Distracted, sometimes.” Her eyebrows lowered when he said the last part as a scowl spread across her face. Opening her mouth to retort, a hand slipped over her face to keep her quiet. 

“I’ll try to explain things to her, Dutch.” Abigail said sweetly, steering Juniper away from the leader’s tent. “What are you thinking?” She hissed in the girls ear as she shoved her into John’s tent and pulled the flaps closed. 

“I’m a better shot than any of them, I should go with them. I can’t keep them safe sitting in camp.” Juniper tried to explain without actually explaining, her arms gesticulating wildly in her anger. 

“They can keep themselves safe.” Abigail sighed, exasperated with Juniper. “Do you see something bad happening?” She had seemed to really believe that Juniper was a fortune teller. It made some aspects easier. 

“No. I’m sure it will go fine without a hitch.” A heavy sigh left her, her shoulders sagging as Juniper realized Abigail was right. “I guess I’m just worried.” 

“Well, that’s something you’re just going to have to get used to. I’m sure Dutch will let you go on a job soon enough, but I can understand why he doesn’t want to send you on this one.” Abigail cocked her hip as she spoke plainly. Her soft, thin fingers slid against Juniper’s neck as she pushed the collar of her shirt aside. A smirk slipped onto her face. 

“What all did you get up to with Arthur while you were out with Lenny?” She asked. Juniper’s anger faded away as she nervously scratched the back of her neck. The heat of a blush rose on her cheeks. “I noticed Lenny came home pretty early and you two didn’t.”

“Aw, if I tell you you’re just going to tell Karen.” Juniper admitted.

“Damn right I will.” Abigail laughed. Her hand still lingered against the livid bruises showing on Juniper’s skin. 

“Well, I mean, I challenged him to a drinking contest.” She started, making Abigail snort in laughter. “And we both lost.” Juniper giggled, seeing Abigail laugh. “And then lost again the next morning, twice.” 

“You would make a very good prostitute.” Abigail finally said, once she’d managed to wipe the tears of laughter from her face. “None of the girls can get Arthur into bed.” Juniper laughed a bit, nodding. 

“What are you two hens cackling about in my damn tent.” John’s scratchy voice was muffled before he stepped inside, pulling the flaps back. 

“I was just explaining to June why she couldn’t go help rescue Sean.” Abigail explained, stifling her laughter. John looked between the two. The cuts on his face were still raw, sutures still holding him together. Juniper caught herself staring when John looked her in the eye. Quickly looking away, she coughed a bit, suddenly uncomfortable. 

“Miss Grimshaw was looking for you.” John said quietly. Juniper wasn’t sure exactly what emotion had chased the laughter away but it made her swallow hard as she nodded and quickly left. 

 

Her fingers were sore from needle pricks by the time Javier rode back with Sean behind him. Miss Grimshaw had insisted on showing her how to darn but Juniper had never held a needle before, let alone tried to mend anything. It was slow going and she didn’t take to it naturally. Frustration rose in her fast and she stood up suddenly, startling Mary Beth who was sitting beside her. Throwing the darning work on the ground, Juniper gave a growl.

“If I prick myself with a needle one more god damned time I’m going to stab SOMEONE in the neck.” She was upset enough her tone jumped to too loud very quickly. 

“Well, I bet we’ll have a party tonight.” Mary Beth said excitedly. “I’m sure old Grimshaw won’t be on you about it until tomorrow at least.” She bent over from her seat and picked up the work Juniper had thrown on the ground. “Why don’t you go see what Sean’s shouting about.” 

Taking a deep breath to calm herself, Juniper nodded. Mary Beth was right, of course. She wasn’t just upset about the stupid sewing Miss Grimshaw forced her into and she realized that. Shaking her shoulders out, Juniper pulled a bottle of whiskey from the crate in Bill’s tent as she walked to where Sean was giving a rousing, self aggrandizing speech.

For a moment, as she watched the red head, the image of his last moment played in her head. Swallowing it down, she raised the bottle to her lips and relished the burn. It wasn’t any good to dwell on that, it was a while off yet. Seemed she was doing a lot of compartmentalizing lately and Juniper vaguely wondered how healthy that could be. 

“See, Juniper, nothing went wrong.” Arthur said, walking up behind her. She glanced at him and the quickly graying sky above them. 

“Didn’t think anything would.” Her retort was tight and she turned away from him, looking back as Sean stumbled off his soap box. 

“Abigail said you were upset about not being able to keep us safe.” He pushed the topic and Juniper bristled.

“Among other things.” She took another slug of the whiskey. Arthur reached out to push the bottle away from her lips. 

“What other things?” He asked, his brows knitting in confusion. 

“Maybe I don’t want to be stuck in camp, absolutely useless, forced to sew because I’m a woman. I’ve never sewed anything in my _life_ and now I’m supposed to do that, instead of going out with you with a gun in my hand? I’m absolutely fucking wasted here in camp, and you know it.” She pointed at him with the bottle still in her hand before taking another slug. “And Dutch is, well he’s Dutch. And I know he won’t believe you but you could at least tell him how good a shot I am. You could at least attempt to argue for me.” Arthur looked away as she lectured him. His jaw clenched and Juniper took a deep breath to stop herself when she saw it. 

“But you can’t, can you? Not yet, at least.” Her voice softened and Arthur looked back. He might have been about to say something but Sean came stumbling over then.

“Well, hello!” He lilted, “You’re a pretty new face.” Juniper smiled at him. She had to admit she had missed the dumbass. “Is old Sourpuss Arthur here ruining your mood?” Sean moved to lean against Arthur’s arm only for Arthur to step out of the way. The man stumbled a bit but quickly regain his composure. Juniper held out her hand which Sean took readily, kissing the back of it. 

“The name’s Juniper.” She smiled in spite of herself. “I’m a fortune teller.” It seemed best to cut off those inquires as quickly as possible, so Juniper brought it up first. 

“Oh? Really? You know, my ol’ Da always said-“ He began but Arthur cut him off with a groan. 

“Not the Da.” He moaned. “Juniper, I think we should-“ Arthur tried to pull her back into the conversation they were having but she was done with it for the night. Raising the bottle to her lips, she wiped at her chin with the cuff of her sleeve. 

“Mary Beth’s going to want a dance in a minute. You should probably oblige.” She pointed past Dutch’s tent where Mary Beth stood with her back to the three. Arthur looked dissatisfied, but accepted her deflection. Sean laughed as Arthur turned and stalked off.

“You certainly know how to piss him off.” Sean said as he slipped an arm through hers and began pulling her towards the fire. 

“It’s a skill.” She said, feeling the warmth of the whiskey in her chest. 

“Really a fortune teller, huh? Not English are you?” He narrowed his eyes but his tone was playful. Juniper laughed hard at the question.

“Scotch-Irish-English, actually. Just a whole bunch of good drinkers who hate each other.” She liked the way his eyes crinkled when he laughed.

“Well, I won’t hold it against you.” As they neared the fire, Juniper untangled herself from Sean’s arm. Quickly sitting down away from him, next to Charles, she kept her eyes on Karen as she walked up to kiss Sean. As much fun as Sean could be, it wouldn’t be worth getting Karen angry at her. Charles nudged her, making her look away to smile at him. He raised his beer and Juniper clinked their bottle together. 

“It was a good fight.” He said. “No one was hurt.” Juniper nodded along, draining the whiskey nearly empty. Her head was starting to float and she liked it like that. 

“Any crash you can walk away from, right?” She mumbled, smirking to herself. Charles slipped a hand around her waist without looking, his fingers resting lightly on her hip. Juniper leaned into him a bit, finishing off her whiskey and setting the bottle by her feet. 

The night went on, everyone singing along. Charles laughed a little when Juniper sang along to Ring Dang Do, another bottle of whiskey sloshing around in her hand. When she staggered to her feet, he rose with her, a steadying hand on her back. 

“I don’t get how ya’ll deal with having zero privacy.” She slurred, tossing her last empty bottle off into the woods. It made a satisfying crash in the darkness.

“You get used to it.” He was steering her towards her sleeping pallet with the ladies. When Juniper realized where they were headed she stopped abruptly, grabbing tightly to Charles’ sleeve. 

“Wait,” She whispered. He leaned in close to hear her and Juniper ran her tongue up the back of his ear. Charles shuddered, his hand on her back grabbing tighter. “We could slip off.” Her eyes darted to the dark woods then back to him.

“You’re drunk.” He scoffed, moving to pull her on but Juniper dug her heels in and shook her head.

“Drunk sex is my favorite kind of sex. And I’m not even that drunk. Come on.” She twisted free of his hand, pulling him by the sleeve as she stumbled into the dark woods. Charles allowed her to pull him. In the darkness, she turned to face him. The edge of his cheek was just visible in the anemic moonlight filtering through the trees. 

“It’s boring around camp without you.” She whined as her hands slipped under the hem of his shirt to start undoing his pants. Charles gave a soft chuckle under his breath.

“Didn’t you have Arthur to entertain you?” He asked, a hand hooking itself in her belt and jerking her hips against his. Juniper suddenly remembered something and gasped, excited enough to start laughing a little. 

“Oh, Charles.” She stopped herself before blurting it out. “Charles, what do you think about Arthur?” The buttons of his fly came loose then and Juniper slipped her hand in to free his still soft member. Charles gave a grunt as she did.

“What? What about him?” He moved as if to stop her but when she turned him to back against a tree and dropped to her knees his arms fell limp beside him. 

“Well, I mean, would you ever want to watch him fuck me?” She asked, not giving him time to answer before taking him fully in her mouth. Still soft, she could take all of him for a moment until he began to groan, a hand gently resting against her head. 

“Would I-“ He cut himself off with a groan, his hand tightening around her hair and pulling her off him. Juniper’s hand dug into his hips as she looked up at him in the faint light of night. “Why, what did he say?” She smirked at his question, feeling like she’d won something. Her hands slipped to her own pants, undoing the buttons before falling back on her ass in the leaves and dirt. Charles stepped forward, towering over her with his erect cock still wet and shiny. 

“Maybe he said he’d like to watch you fuck me.” Shrugging, Juniper pulled her shirt free from her pants. “Maybe I’d really like it if you both fucked me.” Charles bent over, offering her a hand. Juniper took it and found herself pressed back against the tree. Charles was against her, she could feel his breath on her face when he talked. 

“Both of us?” He whispered, hoarse and aroused. Juniper nodded, her hand slipping to his cock of its own decision and sliding up and down the shaft slowly. “At the same time?” She smirked at the disbelief in his voice. “You can do that?” She nodded again, feeling him twitch in her hand. Charles pushed her hands away, sinking to his knees. Pulling her pants and drawers down, he buried his face in her curly mound. His hair was smooth and soft under her fingers, it was all she could focus on until he licked a warm wide strip along her slit. The cry he wrenched out of her was unseemly at best, wanton and slatternly at worst. 

“Oh Charles, I want you and Arthur to ride me like a greenbroke horse.” Her breath came in gasps and sighs as he began lathing his tongue across her wet folds. A thick finger found its way up into her, slowly pushing inside as her arousal ran down the inside of her thighs. She grunted as he crooked the finger and found the spot inside that made a white hot fire build in her core. It was seconds before her climax rose up inside and she came hard all over Charles’ hand. She struggled to keep the feral yell in her throat but her sense quickly left her. Charles stood up, pressing against her to keep her steady against the tree. He kissed her cheek, still wet with her.

“I think I could be talked into it.” Charles whispered into her ear. He held her there, hands on her waist as she slowly regained her breath. “Let’s put you to bed.” Pulling back from her, he tucked himself away. Juniper whined a bit but let him pull her out of the woods. She was almost asleep before she even laid down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Funny story, I had originally intended to do this in six chapters like the game but then realized the chapters would be huge, unwieldy demons because it’s an eighty hour game. So now I don’t know how many chapters it will be. Probably a lot.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for taking so long. I needed to do _that_ mission and I was procrastinating it.

The next morning Juniper snapped awake as if something had woken her. She looked around, surprised to see Karen and Mary Beth still asleep. Clearly she had slept in a little but the others were all early risers. Remembering how much everyone had drank the night before, she laughed to herself as she got started on the chores for the day. Maybe Miss Grimshaw wouldn’t complain about her for a while. Maybe Miss Grimshaw was hungover and wouldn’t say anything for a while. 

Hosea was groaning at the table as she carried a sack of grain to the chuckwagon. He eyed her, chipper as ever, as she dumped it on the ground. Reaching up to pull and apple off the wagon, Juniper felt his eyes still on her. She turned to meet his gaze, biting a chunk out of the apple and smiling.

“You’re a demon. That’s the only answer.” He muttered. Juniper laughed a little around the bite of apple before swallowing. 

“You guys give me a run for my money, I’ll admit.” She sat down opposite him and Hosea rubbed his head a little, exhaustion showing in his face. He went to say something else but Juniper’s head swiveled around when she heard a familiar line.

“Speak boy, don’t cry! Speak!” Arthur’s voice carried across the camp. Hosea watched Juniper as she listened to Arthur harassing the O’Driscoll still tied to a tree. 

“I suppose you think we’re too harsh on that O’Driscoll,” Hosea started, almost apologetically. Juniper was only half listening.

“The only good O’Driscoll is a dead O’Driscoll but Kieran isn’t an O’Driscoll.” She said, distracted but tore her eyes away from peering around the chuckwagon trying to see the men who had gathered. “He really isn’t.”

“You know him?” Hosea asked. Juniper leaned in close so no one else could hear, but aside from Bill gleefully grabbing up a pair of tongs, there was no one else. 

“Hosea, I know all of you.” She said, staring him down. Hosea didn’t waver in her gaze, his eyes searched her face for any hint of a lie. 

“I still don’t know if I believe that, dear girl.” He answered softly. Juniper relaxed back a bit, nodding.

“That’s fair.” She glanced over at Arthur pulling Kieran along with him. He shoved the pitiful creature forward, calling for John. His eyes lighted on Juniper, sitting dejectedly with Hosea and his shoulders sagged a bit. 

“Juniper,” He called her. She hadn’t expected him to speak to her after she’d dismissed him so rudely last night. It was her fault really, her temper tended to get to her when she drank. “Ride with us.” Arthur gave a wave of his arm, motioning her over. Catching the squeak of excitement in her throat before she embarrassed herself, Juniper strode across the camp to mount up Bulletface. 

Kieran climbed up behind John on Old Boy and Bill followed behind them. He kept pace beside her and her smaller horse, eyeing her repeatedly as they rode. Juniper smirked to herself, surprised to see Bill curious about her. 

“So you’re a fortune teller?” He finally asked, moving a bit closer so she could hear him. Juniper nodded. “What all can you tell?”

“Well, I know why you were discharged from the military, _Marion_.” He flinched, going rigid as she said his given name. She felt bad about it almost as soon as the words were out of her mouth. Bill was an idiot but he didn’t deserve her teasing, not yet anyways. “You get to run your own gang, one day.” The slow building up of pressure between her eyes started to sting a bit. 

“I do?” Bill lit up as she said that. Juniper nodded, biting her lip to distract from the pain in her head. 

“A damn big gang. Just like you wanted.” That seemed to make him happy, maybe a smile peeked out from under his beard, it was hard to tell. Talking died as they got close to the O’Driscoll camp. Leaving their horses back under the trees, everyone dismounted and snuck through the high grass the the edge of the trees. 

“Let’s try not to start things off.” Arthur whispered hoarsely at them, making Juniper snort in derision. He scowled at her and she held hands up, making a mental note to control her reactions better and knowing she wouldn’t. 

“Well, if you know what’s going to happen why don’t you start us off?” Bill suggested. Arthur glanced at him, surprised Bill had spoken up. Juniper raised an eyebrow. Before she could respond three O’Driscolls walked by the edge of the woods, one stopping to pee. Arthur pulled a throwing knife from his belt and started to creep forward. Juniper pulled her rifle from her back and followed along with Bill.

Arthur took down the first man, then Bill and Arthur took the next two. Juniper made a note to get herself some throwing knives later on. They were so damn useful. The next man didn’t go down quietly and gunshots where filling the air before he hit the ground. 

Juniper skidded behind a broken wagon, popping up to headshot a man. Splinters shattered off the old wood, nearly catching her eye. She ducked back down, taking a deep breath before leaning out to the side to catch the next shooter in the throat. A ribbon of blood followed him to the ground as he gasped for air. 

There was no time to spend any thought on how badly a man was dying, Juniper had to press forward. It wasn’t a long fight, she tried to remember. Especially not with an extra gun. She ran towards a rock John was crouched behind. He was pinned down with two O’Driscolls firing at him. As she ran, she raised her rifle and caught one in the arm. He staggered back as she slid behind the rock next to John. He seemed mildly surprised to see her but didn’t complain when she took out the two gunmen rapid fire. 

Silence spread slowly over the woods and Juniper let out her breath in a slow, even sigh. John stood up, looking like he wanted to say something but Juniper shook her head, cutting him off without even looking at him. Arthur was started for the cabin, ready to rip Colm apart. Her eyes followed him for a second but she realized Colm wasn’t in the cabin.

“Wait,” Juniper ran after him, trotting a few steps to catch him. Arthur slowed his step a bit, looking at her. “Why’d you bring me? I wasn’t very nice to you last night.”

“You were right. You’re too good a shot to be stuck sewing all day.” He said like it was an obvious fact. Juniper felt like a heel and glanced away as they neared the cabin door. She reached for the knob, Arthur to the side of her when the door was flung open and she found herself struggling with an O’Driscoll on top of her.

His hands closed around her throat and Juniper shoved against his face, pushing it away from her. As sudden as he had jumped on her, a shot rang out and he stumbled back. Arthur stood to the side, seeming spellbound as the mustached man crumpled to the porch of the cabin. 

Kieran still held the gun up like he hadn’t expected that to work. Arthur looked between him and Juniper, trying to parse out what had happened.

“Thank you, Kieran.” Juniper said, taking a second to gather herself before climbing to her feet. Arthur shook his head and remembered why he was at the cabin in the first place. 

“Colm ain’t here!” He shouted as he glanced inside the one room shack. “You set us up!” Anger flared in his face as he stomped towards Kieran. The poor man nearly shrieked in fear of Arthur. Juniper threw herself between the two, both hands on Arthur’s chest.

“He wouldn’t have saved my life if it was a set up, you idiot.” She yelled back at Arthur, meeting his level of anger. The two stared each other down for a minute before Arthur looked away, scratching at his chin. “He saved my life, he gave up the O’Driscolls, what more do you want out of him?” Juniper stepped forward, making Arthur give up ground. “You couldn’t ask for more out of a person and you still rag on him. I swear to god the next time I see you harassing him I will take you down myself.” She was right up to his chest now, snarling up at him. Arthur seemed surprised by the anger Juniper radiated. “After how ya’ll treated him and he _still_ saved my life. If that’s not a ringing endorsement for the Van der Linde gang I don’t know what is. 

“Alright!” Arthur shouted, hands up in surrender. “Alright! Shit! John, give Kieran a ride back to camp and let him bathe some of that stench off him. Tell Dutch we can trust him.” 

Bill grumbled a bit but followed after John, leaving Arthur and Juniper still inches away from each other and scowling. 

“You knew Colm wouldn’t be in there.” Arthur said, quiet.

“Yes.” Juniper took a few breaths, trying to squash down the anger bubbling inside her.

“So why’d you let us go through all that?” He suddenly matched her ire, his hand sweeping across the open space littered with fresh bodies. Juniper thought a moment, finally looking away from Arthur as she tried to remember something. 

“Oh, because of this!” She said, slipping around him into the cabin. Pulling the dirty shotgun off the mantle, she tossed it to Arthur as he followed behind her before sticking her arm up the chimney. On the ledge just inside, her fingers closed around a thick bundle. Paper money, bigger than the bills she was used too, was bundled together with a string. 

“I think it’s about six hundred dollars.” As she handed the wad of cash to Arthur, he took it stiffly. A little dumbfounded, he took a minute to clear his head. Thumbing through the bills, he handed some to her.

“Are you okay?” He asked, watching her as she stuffed the bills into the pocket of her pants. Juniper shrugged, not listening and thinking about buying a satchel. “Juniper.” His voice hung heavy in the air, demanding attention. 

“Arthur would you ask the other men if they were okay?” She looked up to meet his eyes. 

“I ain’t fucking the other men.” He retorted quick enough to give Juniper whiplash. Her face fell into a surprised look. 

“No, I guess you aren’t.” A small laugh was pressed out of her as a smile spread on her face. “I’m fine. I knew Kieran would shoot him.” She glanced down at the corpse on the porch as they stepped outside. “There’s about sixty dollars on the table in there, you should grab it and light out. This place won’t be secure for very much longer.” Juniper gave a harsh whistle, pleased to see Bulletface come running. 

“Wait, where are you going?” Arthur asked, his hand slipping around her arm to stop her. 

“I got some errands to go do, is all. I’ve got a horse, a gun and a pocketful of money to spend, I’ll be fine. I’ll come back to camp in a day or two. Don’t do anything stupid while I’m gone.” She gave him a hard stare as she swung up into the saddle. Arthur sighed, giving a shrug. 

“I ain’t making no promises but I will try.” He finally said. Juniper smirked.

“Good enough.” She said before turning and slipping through the trees. As she rode off, Juniper patted Bulletface’s neck.

“What do you think, girl? Think we can make it to the bayou and back in a day? Got someone who I need to introduce myself to.” Taking a breath, she squeezed her legs tightly and Bulletface leapt into a flat gallop. They raced along the paths across the ground. A sense of satisfaction slowly rose in her chest as Juniper realized she didn’t need a map to find where she was going. 

Late nights alone, after putting Rosie to bed, had been spent playing the game like it was her job. Trying to escape into a fantasy world because she was just bored with her real life. Now she was here, she felt more capable than she had in years. 

Scenery raced past them as Bulletface carried her quickly across the changing landscape. Before she knew it, the turn off to Rhodes past. Shaking her head to clear her thoughts, Juniper kept her eyes open for the right bridge. Hoofsteps thudded in a rhythmic tempo as they crossed over into the swamp.

It made her a little nervous to slip into the muggy, fetid air of the swamp. Bulletface was steady enough but Juniper wasn’t stopping for anything if she could help it. As she neared the cabin, a voice called out to her.

“Hello there, Miss! You must be real lonely out here, friend.” The man beckoned her closer, waving his hand. Juniper paused, slipping from the saddle and walking to the steps of the cabin. 

Juniper drew her revolver quick and smooth, aiming for the head and popping off two rounds. The man was dead before he hit the ground, his blood splatter across the weathered clapboard of his shack. She took the steps two at a time and ducked into the cabin to scrounge up any supplies. Her ears caught the sound of another rider and she thought better of just leaving a corpse on the front porch. 

He was heavier than her looked, and left a streak of blood behind him as she dragged him into his cabin. For a moment, Juniper took a long hard look at the man before spitting on him and rifling through his pockets. 

She was done quickly, he hadn’t put up any kind of fight and no one had stumbled upon them as she rifled through his things. It surprised her just how easy it was. Walking down the steps, looking over a small money clip, she didn’t bother looking up before whistling. As she slipped the money clip into her pocket, she looked up. In front of her stood a familiar man. He was dressed all in black, tall hat set center on his head. 

“I know you.” Juniper said, stopping in her steps to look at him. He almost smirked, standing serenely beside the road.

“I’m glad, because I’m not entirely sure I know you.” His voice was middle toned and even as he spoke, no hint of malice.

“I’m not from around here.” She sucked in a deep breath, her eyes scanning the surroundings hoping Bulletface was nearby. 

“How long do you think you’ll be staying?” He began stepping closer to her and Juniper almost flinched when Bulletface nudged her from behind. Her hands grabbed hold of the reins and she was up in the saddle, feeling more secure. 

“Can’t say I really know.” The man’s eyes followed her hand as it wrapped around the grip of her gun. Part of her wanted to groan in frustration that this was yet _another_ thing she had to worry about. “But I’m not planning on staying.” 

“You are planning on taking what is mine.” His tone turned dark. The clear sky above them started to cloud.

“Wasn’t really yours if I can take it that easily, was it?” She knew the bullets wouldn’t hurt him but damn if she didn’t want to waste a few on him anyways. “Besides, I’m not taking them with me, I’m just changing their direction. Even you could appreciate that.” Thunder rumbled in the distance. 

“A point well made, but you’ll forgive me if I don’t trust you.”

“Right back at ya.” Juniper snipped. Turning Bulletface through the underbrush, she kept an eye on the stranger as she headed back for the road. 

“Mind you don’t get lost.” He called after her. The sky continued to darken until Juniper was racing a storm, hoping to outrun it and not get wet. 

Her efforts worked, and she managed to lose the storm as she rode into the Heartlands. Nerves were getting to her, she didn’t want to make a camp for the night after running into the man in black. His cabin was somewhere in the Bayou but now she didn’t want to get near it. Around her, coyotes yipped and called as she disturbed their nightly activities. A few rabbits raced past the road, startled out of their hides by the thundering hooves. Hanging high in the sky, a full moon glowed down as she turned off at Twin Stacks and made a bee line for camp. 

She was exhausted by her ride, nearly tripping over herself as she stumbled to the women’s wagon. Falling asleep beside Karen, Juniper was too tired to worry about anything for a very brief period. 

Sunlight and Miss Grimshaw’s boot woke her up the next morning. She grunted at the rude awakening, glaring up at the old woman as she returned the death stare. 

“Get up and get to work!” She snarled before stomping off, leaving Juniper to stand up and work the kinks out of her limbs. Still sore from the long, hard ride, Juniper wandered near where the coffee was brewing by the chuckwagon. Abigail was enjoying a cup as she walked up. 

“Good to see you still with us.” She said, chipper and awake. Juniper grumbled an attempt at a hello before pouring herself a cup and breathing in the scent. 

“How ever did ya’ll busy yourselves without me to make fun of?” She smiled a little around the cup. 

“Oh you know, the usual. Sewing, washing, robbing.” Abigail laughed a bit and Juniper felt pulled along by the sound, laughing with her. “If you’d like, later today I could show you some pick pocketing.”

“I’d like that a lot, Abigail.” Caffeine helped Juniper wake up and remember how to interact with others without snarling. Her eyes scanned the camp, noticing one person in particular was missing.

“Where’s Arthur?” Juniper asked. Abigail raised an eye but kept her smirk to herself.

“He had to go get Micha out of jail.” She said casually. Ice water suddenly replaced Juniper’s blood. 

“Micha?” Her grip tightened on the cup of coffee but Abigail didn’t seem to notice. 

“Yeah, I guess you haven’t really met him before. He’s...a good shot but I’d avoid him if I were you.” Abigail tried to explain tactfully.

“Oh, I know Micha.” Juniper said through gritted teeth. Abigail’s cut to her at that. 

“Oh, then...” She was going to say something, maybe supportive or understanding but Arthur rode into camp then. Juniper’s eyes snapped to him, anger building up in her. Abigail made a motion to reach out for her only for Juniper to stalk after Arthur. He headed to his tent, a hand straying to a letter laying on the table there. 

“Arthur, _what did you do_?!” Her voice raised into a shriek that made all the horses in camp look to where the commotion was coming from. He turned fast on his heels at her yell. 

“Juniper? I didn’t - ” He tried to figure out why she was so mad all of a sudden but the hellbeast yelling in his face didn’t give him anytime.

Juniper stepped into Arthur’s tent, her fists balled on her collar as she shouted in his face. “You let Micah _out of jail_?!” Her sudden and unexpected anger took Arthur by surprise and he grabbed her wrists, trying to keep her from strangling him. “I said don’t do anything stupid while I was gone! I was gone for a day! A god damned day and you’ve let the devil out!” 

“Juniper!” Arthur said with a grunt, ripping her hands off him. She took a deep breath, holding her hands up and backing away from him. Most people in camp were staring now but she didn’t really care. 

“What the hell has gotten into you?” He asked, more concerned than angry. She rested her hands on her hips as she took another breath and forced herself to calm down. Every thought she tried to put into words stalled at the pain in her head. She closed her eyes and turned her head, trying to think of a way to put it.

“He’s a rat, Arthur.” Juniper looked back without turning her head back. She waited a moment before taking a deep breath and turning away. “You know that, though.” She walked away, turning thoughts over in her head. There had been a hope, before, that if she left Micha in the jail he would just hang and nothing bad would happen. He was a major catalyst and while she wasn’t quite sure how much was his fault, she knew a lot was. 

Finding herself on the edge of the cliff, Juniper sat down and let her legs swing. Beneath her the Dakota snaked and curled on itself. The view was calming enough and Juniper was trying hard to calm down. It wasn’t Arthur’s fault, she knew that. She was mad at Micha for existing and Arthur had been caught in the crossfire. 

Someone sat down beside her on the cliff and to her surprise, it was Charles. He didn’t look at her, just leaned back on his arms watching the scenery. The silence was welcomed as she got herself back under control. 

“Want to go hunting with me?” He asked, his voice a low rumble.

“God, yes.” Juniper said with a heavy sigh. “Can’t be gone long, though. I can’t trust any of you not to fuck it up.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still doing this, I guess.

“So what are we hunting?” She asked as they climbed to their feet and headed towards the horses. Charles shrugged, grabbing his bow from his tent as they passed it. 

“Hadn’t really decided yet.” He admitted. “But it seemed like you could use some time away from camp. I know hunting always helps clear my head.” 

“You’re an observant man Charles Smith.” Juniper muttered, feeling a hot flush to her cheeks in embarrassment for how she’d reacted. Everyone in camp had clearly heard her lose her temper. 

Bulletface wickered to her as they approached. Her saddle had been taken off and set over the hitching post and she’d been well brushed out. Something Juniper had neglected in her tired state the night before. Moving to inspect her horse, she was surprised to find her well groomed and cared for. A curious hmm caught in her throat as she glanced over at Kieran. 

The man was sitting against a rock behind the chuckwagon, apparently sleeping. As she moved to tack up Bulletface, she caught him watching her for just a second before he turned his face away. She smiled to herself a bit as she climbed into the saddle. 

“You know Charles, I’ve never actually seen a bison in person before.” She admitted as they turned away from camp and started trotting out of the woods. 

“Really? Do they not have them...where you’re from?” He was better at dancing around the topic than Arthur. 

“Oh they do, just not where I live. By the early 1900s their numbers were dwindled to just a thousand due to overhunting by white people trying to starve the plains Indians out. A concerted effort was made to protect them from extinction and now...where I’m from, their number have reached a safe number but it’s still nothing compared to the enormous herds that once roamed the prairie.” She rattled off the information without a breath. Charles glanced at her from Taima. 

“I read a lot.” She tried to explain, failing. Charles gave a slow nod. “I’ve just never seen one before.”

“Alright then, we’ll go find some bison.”

The plains stretched out, soft rolling hills meeting plateaus that jutted up harsh against the sky. It was overwhelmingly beautiful as the rode through the landscape. Juniper didn’t pay much mind to where they were going, enjoying being able to see the landmarks around her. Charles only glanced back occasionally to make sure she was still following him as they rode out, searching for buffalo. 

The heat was starting to rise as he pulled the horses up for a break. Dismounting, he scratched under Taima’s bridle as the horse leaned into his touch. Juniper looked around, still enjoying the scenery. 

“I don’t see any buffalo, Charles.” She said, a joking sternness to her tone. Charles shook his head, smirking. 

“I know, guess I’ve been doing a lousy job tracking.” He sounded playful enough that Juniper squinted at him. 

“You weren’t track at all, were you?” She stepped closer to him as he bashfully looked away. “You were just leading me out here all alone to take advantage of me.”

“No one for miles out here,” Charles chose to scan the horizon rather than look at the growing smile on Juniper’s face. “We won’t be missed back in camp until tomorrow.” 

“Why Charles,” Juniper feigned a fancy southern accent. “Am I to assume your intentions were less than honorable?” She threw her hand across her eyes. “I am not that kind of girl.” 

“Yes you are.” He was almost laughing as his hands closed around her waist and pulled her to him.

“Yeah, you’re right, I am.” She admitted, dropping the act and smiling up at him. “But really, out here in the open where anyone could see?” A small thrill ran through her at the thought as she glanced around. Her hands closed around his wrists as Charles pulled her against his hips. 

“Yes.” His face was almost too close to hers. She waited a tick, feeling arousal prickling along her spine. Glancing around once more to be sure there was no one around, she smirked back up at him. 

“Alright then.” Her hands strayed to his belt buckle only for him to cover her hands with one of his. 

“Get on your knees.” His voice was low and rumbling. Juniper took a split second to parse what he’d said before dropping down to the soft grass. A smile spread across his face as she responded to his command. “You like it when I tell you what to do?” 

“You have no idea.” Juniper replied, already starting to breathe heavy. 

“Unbutton your shirt.” He growled. Her hands moved without her really thinking about it, pulling her shirt free of her belt and slipping the buttons loose. When it hung open, Charles took a long moment to look her over. His big, meaty hand reached out to softly caress a breast. 

“Though you didn’t like corsets.” He murmured, his thumb rubbing against the edge of the supportive underthing. 

“Too big to ride a horse without some kind of support.” Juniper said, her eyes closing a bit as Charles slipped his thumb under the edge of the corset, under her chemise and easily found her nipple. She gave a soft gasp as he made contact. 

“Mm, I wouldn’t call it too big. I’d call it just right.” He unbuckled his belt, loosening his pants enough to spring his half hard cock free. Juniper took it without a word, licking a wet strip from the base to the head while a moan leaked out of Charles. Far away from anyone, they didn’t have to worry about being quiet. Feeling him grow in her mouth made Juniper moan around him. Charles hand slipped into her hair, his thumb trailing across the short hair on one side. 

“Think it’s time I shaved that down again.” He murmured. Juniper looked up through her lashes to see him smiling down at her. “Can you take the corset off?” It was genuine question. She nodded, pulling off his cock with a loud pop. Her hands slipped around the hooks running up the front of the corset and strained to undo them. The garment fell loose to the ground. Charles reached down, pull her shirt and chemise off, leaving her bare from the top up. A tingle of arousal at being exposed spread through her middle. 

“If I told you to offer your breasts to the first man who rode by, would you?” He quirked an eyebrow at her, waiting for the answer. A blush spread from her cheeks down to her chest as Juniper swallowed hard. 

“Yes.” She admitted. A smirk spread across Charles’s face. 

“On your hands and knees.” He commanded, not waiting for her to move before pushing her down. The grass was soft under hands and she gripped handfuls off it as Charles laid across her back. His meaty hands grabbed her breasts, sliding down to the tips to tweak the nipples. Gentle at first, Juniper moans drove him to grip harder and pulled her nipples enough to hurt. She panted a bit, arching her back into his touch. 

“Take your pants off.” He whispered into her ear, pulling back from her. Juniper’s hands scrambled for her belt. Once she unbuttoned her fly, Charles ripped the pants down to her knees leaving her backside bare. A thick finger slid easily into her aching slit, pushing a moan out her. 

“What’s this?” Charles asked, a hand sliding softly along the back of her thigh. Juniper took a second to remember she probably had a pretty looking bruise there.

“Oh, that’s um...Arthur gave me that.” She muttered, feeling her blush grow deeper. Charles’ hand slid over the area few times. 

“He really should have evened that up.” Charles said, mostly to himself. Juniper was about to say something when his hand landed sharp against the other thigh. Crying out in pain in surprise, she jerked away for a second. “You alright?” He sounded worried. Juniper shook her head and pressed back towards him again. 

“Yeah.” Her voice was heavy and thick, another wave or growing arousal spread out from her core. “Do it again.” Charles chuckled a moment, slapping her hard in the same spot again. It was hot against his hand as he softly rubbed the area for a moment before hitting it again. 

“Bet I can get a bigger bruise than that.” He mused. Letting his hand fly a few more times, Juniper was gasping before he was done. “Still okay?” Charles checked in. Juniper nodded. “You think that’s enough?”

“God, please just fuck me.” Juniper gasped out, her cunt aching in anticipation. Charles only chuckled as he undid his buckle and lined his stiff member up with her waiting slit. One solid thrust buried him to the hilt and Juniper gave a cry as he bottomed out. Her panting came heavy as Charles paused. His warm hand slid down her back, a careful soft touch. 

“This is a lovely view, June.” He murmured to her. Losing herself to her arousal, Juniper pressed back against him. Slowly she began to fuck herself on his cock. “And it just keeps getting better,” Charles added, his hands resting lightly on her hips, letting her do the work on her own for moment. Suddenly his hands tightened into her hips hard enough to bruise and he started a temp hard and fast enough to nearly knock Juniper off her knees. 

Her arms gave out and she rested her shoulders against the grass. Reach forward, Charles pressed her head against the ground as he started slamming into her harder than Juniper thought possible. It stretched and filled her enough that Juniper couldn’t think straight. When a practiced hand slipped around her waist and found her clit she gave a cry, moaning loud as her arousal built until she was screaming out. Her walls fluttered around him, pulling him into his climax. Pulling out to spill into the dirt, Charles took a deep breath and let out a loud sigh. 

“You got a special skill, Juniper. Pretty sure you just sucked a year of my life out of me through my dick.” He said as he sat back, breathing hard and trying not to. Juniper rolled onto her back, struggling to pull her pants back up. 

“Yeah, probably.” She laughed. “You have to help me put the stupid corset back on.” Charles groaned playfully. “Later. I’m going to just pass out now. God, Charles. You know how to wear a lady out.” 

“I’ll get you a bedroll.” He offered, pulling his pants back up as he stood. Juniper gave a thumbs up as she waited for her breath to return. 

 

Juniper woke up to a snort of hot air in her face. She opened her eyes to see an expanse of dark brown above her. A brown eye looked down at her from a head at least as long as her torso. Frozen in surprise, all she could do was stare up at the massive beast standing over her. 

“Juniper.” Charles hissed low. She dared to turn her head to see him crouched in the grass not too far off. “Don’t move.” He said as a hoof landed heavy beside her in the dirt. Her hands raised above her in some vain self preservation instinct as she look back up the massive beast walking over her. Another hoof hit the ground close enough to her head to pull her hair but she kept stock still as it passed by. 

Once it had passed she didn’t dare move for a minute, still in shock at her rude awakening. Charles crouched over her, his hand grasped her wrist and helped pull her to sitting. Juniper finally remembered to breathe, looking over her shoulder at the great giant that had walked over her. 

“Guess I got to see a bison up close.” She finally said, her voice a harsh whisper. Charles gave a soft raspy laugh. 

“Are you okay?” He asked, his attention was on her body and his hands slid along her side looking for injury. 

“Surprisingly, yeah. He didn’t step on me.” She looked at the hoofprint left in the dirt next to where she was laying. Around them a small herd was walking by, unbothered by the two people sitting in their midst. 

“Lucky then, they’re not the most graceful of creatures.” Charles admitted, his hand lingering on her arm as the watched the creatures. He radiated warmth in the cool evening air and the hand felt hot as a brand against her skin. 

“Neither am I,” Juniper laughed a bit louder. One of the creatures snorted at her noise and eyed them. She quickly shut up under the attention. 

“We should maybe get back to camp?” Charles suggested, slowly standing up and pulling Juniper up with him. The herd was moving on, slowly passing them by and headed for the horizon. 

“Yeah, can’t leave Arthur alone for long.” She grumbled, watching the last of the bison trot away to keep up with the herd. Charles gave a whistle and their horses came running while Juniper picked her bedroll and folded it up.

“What did he do?” Charles asked. He’d been pointedly avoiding the cause of her outburst at camp the whole day. Juniper’s shoulders sagged a bit as she thought again how she’d reacted. 

“He got Micha out of jail.” She finally said before climbing up into her saddle. Charles watched her for a long minute before climbing up on Taima. 

“And that’s bad?” His tone was even, nonjudgmental. 

“It is if it’s Micha. Charles, you’ve talked to the guy. He’s bad news.” She looked over to see him nodding. 

“Did you tell him not to?” He asked, turning their horses back towards camp. 

“No.” She admitted, groaning to herself after a second. “Ugh, I was such a bitch. I should apologize to Arthur for yelling at him like that. I just...Micah is such a...”

“I know.” Charles said, his calmness infectious. Juniper gave a sigh and tried to let it go. The ride back was soothing to her, they walked slow, letting the morning sun climb high without a worry. Just being around Charles was calming to Juniper, even if he didn’t say much. 

She shot a turkey near camp, hooking it to the side of her saddle before mounting up again. At least they’d bring something back instead of nothing. Pearson would be pleased, she thought. 

He was, voicing his excitement as she strung the bird up on the chuckwagon. His meaty hand clapped her shoulder pleasantly as she moved to the water bucket next to the cooking table. Abigail was standing near the campfire, her arms tight around herself. 

“Where’s Arthur?” Juniper asked, glancing around the camp as she drank water from the bucket with a ladle. Abigail shrugged, drinking a coffee. The other woman shrugged as she sipped.

“Think I saw him heading out for Herr Strauss today.” She said. Juniper’s head snapped around to look at her, the ladle clattered back into the bucket. 

“Are you sure?” Juniper asked. Abigail nodded.

“Yeah, I saw him leaving about an hour ago. Strauss sends him out to collects debt-“

“I know what Herr Strauss does.” Juniper cut her off, storming off. She chose to be angry instead of worried, made it easier to stay focused. Bulletface tossed her head as Juniper mounted up, spurring her into a flat gallop. The quick little mare ate up the ground and Valentine passed in a blur as Juniper steered her down the dirt road to the Downes Farm. 

Her heart was in her throat as she neared the homestead. Maybe he had gone for the other debts first. Surely she could beat him there. Worried thoughts swirled in her head as the realization she might already be too late clenched her chest. Just down the road, in front of the Downes Farm she could see Bourbon grazing calmly. Arthur was standing at the fence of Downe’s little vegetable patch but he hadn’t opened the gate yet.

“Stop!” Juniper heard her voice crack as she threw herself from the saddle, only stumbling a bit. Arthur looked over his shoulder at her as Juniper stumbled and climbed back to her feet, nearly running at him. He stepped back from the fence and Thomas Downes looked over to watch her. 

She threw herself at him, tears stinging her eyes as she blinked them back. Worry flashed onto his face to see her so worked up. Juniper put herself between Arthur and Downes, shoving the burly man with every ounce of her strength. Back towards his horse, away from the sick man cowering in front of them. The door of the farmhouse slammed open and Downes’ wife and son were running out. 

“Get back on your horse, Arthur.” Her voice wasn’t a scream this time but it still cracked in her throat. Mrs. Downes moved as if to help Juniper but she turned and kept a hand up, keeping the woman at bay. Arthur let her shove him, any thoughts of protesting vanished when he saw the tears in her eyes actually spilling over her cheeks. 

“June?” He asked, a hand resting on her arm as she shoved him further back. “What’s wrong?” 

“Get on the fucking horse.” She snarled at him, leaning into the anger. Arthur swung up into the saddle, watching as Juniper climbed back up onto Bulletface. She steeled her face and glared Arthur down as he began walking away from the farm. Behind them the Downes family watched in silent confusion as Juniper marched Arthur away from them.

Back on the main road, Juniper dismounted and walked off into the open field beside the road. A cliff overlooked the river and Juniper had to lean heavy on her knees, sucking in deep breathes. 

“Juniper, what the hell is going on?” Arthur asked, walking up behind her. 

“Did you touch him?” She asked, tossing her head back and looking into the late morning sky. Tears were threatening to come again and she fought the feeling. 

“What?” Arthur froze, confused more than anything. 

“Did you touch him? Did he cough in your face?” The buzzy, freezing feeling of panic was stinging the inside of her chest. 

“No, you stopped me before I could get close to him.” Arthur reached out for her shoulder, pulling her around. Relief was flooding the panic out of her and Juniper lost her battle against the tears. They slipped down in spite of her sniffing. “June, what’s wrong?” He whispered the words. Juniper threw her arms around his chest, squeezing a side harder than comfortable. Arthur took a second before he wrapped his arms around her. She sobbed into his shirt, her hands fisting the cloth of his shirt on his back. For a long moment he stroked her hair, shushing into her ear. 

“Arthur you can’t do this shit.” She sucked in a deep breath, her shoulders shuddering as she calmed herself down. Pulling away from him and looking away as she wiped at her face, Juniper stepped away. Try to save what little face she had left, she turned away from Arthur and looked out over the river. “If you go through with that debt, you _will_ die.” A throbbing ache in her head made her try and shake it off. Wiping at her itchy nose, she saw a streak of red across the side of her hand. 

“Is that what this is about?” He asked, watching her. Juniper nodded, her voice catching from the pain in her head. “June.” Reaching out, he turned her around. His face soured when he saw the nose bleed. Pulling his neckerchief off, he wiped at her face. It felt like something had broken inside her head, or torn. 

“I think I changed it.” She thought out loud. Arthur listened silently. “I think it hurts more the worse I change the story.” Her breath was shaky, slowing growing steady as the pain between her eyes faded. Arthur’s hand was still on her shoulder, holding her steady, grounding her. After a long silence she was able to look at Arthur again. 

“I’ll get you the money.” She said, soft and quiet. Arthur swallowed and looked away. “I know Strauss and Dutch won’t let you drop this, so I’ll get you the money. Please just, stay away from Downes. Forever.” 

“Hey,” Arthur pulled her against his chest. “Okay.” A heavy sigh settled in his chest as she relaxed against him. “I’ll help you get the money. No more debts.” They took their time, standing there in the gentle breeze. Once Arthur felt Juniper had calmed down enough, he let go of her and whistled for his horse. Both horses came trotting over from where they had been patiently grazing. 

“Where to first?” He asked once they both settled into their saddles. Juniper gave one more wipe at her nose with her sleeve before turning Bulletface towards the road. 

“Cumberland Falls first.” She nodded to herself. Arthur shrugged and followed behind.

 

The map she found behind the waterfall lead them up north, deeper into the snow of Ambarino.They rode in silence until snow started to accumulate on the ground. Juniper hunched her shoulders, starting to shiver against the cold. It was her own stupid fault for forgetting about the weather. The horses trudged through the ever growing drifts as heavy, fat flakes began to fall from the sky. Inwardly she cursed herself but kept on going, if they turned back now it would have been for nothing. She was shivering harder, her shirt barely keeping the snow off but she was determined to find the gold to cover the debts. 

“Juniper,” Arthur’s voice carried on the wind. “June.” He rode his horse up beside her. “We need to find some shelter and let this storm blow over.” She pulled Bulletface up sharp and looked around. A small frozen lake was to her right. "You're going to freeze before we find anything."

“There, there’s a cabin on the shore back against the mountains.” She pointed across the ice in the general direction. The snow was falling too thick for them to see it from the trail. Arthur didn’t look like he quite believed her but shrugged anyways. As Juniper turned them off the main trail a loud, lingering howl carried on the wind. Bulletface shied at the noise, side stepping across the snow. Juniper whirled her head around to try and see where the animals were attacking from. Arthur struggled to keep his horse calm when out of the snow a wolf darted between the horses legs. Arthur was already firing off at the beast when Bulletface panicked and threw Juniper to the ground. For a brief moment, she thought maybe she could land on her feet. 

She landed hard on her back, the breath knocked from her lungs with a painful grunt. Taking a dazed minute to struggle to her feet, another wolf lunged at her. Instinct took over and Juniper threw her arm up to stop it. Sharp teeth sank into her forearm, ripping and tearing at the flesh beneath her cotton shirt. Shrieking in anger, she beat at the animal’s face, anything to make it let go. It charged forward, her arm still in it's mouth, and Juniper found herself beneath the wolf. Saliva and her own blood splattered on her face as the wolf shook it's head, worrying her arm like a bone. A shot rang out and it dropped dead to the snow, bright red blood pooling around it. 

“Juniper!" Arthur slid off Bourbon and hurriedly walked over. She was shakily climbing to her feet as he reached her. Without another word, he was holding her arm up.”Did he get you bad?” She hissed a little as he rotated her wrist gently. “Yeah, that looks bad.”

“To shreds you say...” Adrenaline was keeping most of the pain at bay for the moment, Arthur looking at her in confusion as she joked. She slipped her arm out of his hands and whistled for Bulletface who came trotting over. Grabbing up his loose reins, she began walking towards the cabin she knew was there, her torn arm held against her chest. Arthur grabbed Bourbon’s reins and followed.

The cabin wasn’t far, but as the adrenaline ebbed out of her the pain replaced it. Her arm throbbed with every step and it was still leaking blood, leaving a trail of drips behind her. 

It was really more of a shack, half buried in snow. Rising up out of the storm, almost looking resentful to be receiving company. They hitched the horses outside and climbed the stairs to look around. The inside wasn’t much better. So cold ice hung from the potbelly in the center of the one room. Bunk beds were crammed into the corner next to some counters and cabinets. Arthur held up his lantern to look around the dim interior. 

“Well, it’s not much but if I can get a fire going, it’ll keep the wind and snow off of us. That’ll be enough.” He kicked at the stove, knocking icicles off the metal. “I’ll have to go get some wood.” In a blast of cold wind, Arthur stomped out. Juniper was left scrambling for something to wrap her still bleeding arm in. The cold had helped slow the flow but it hadn't stopped it. 

She sat on the floor, leaning back against the bunk beds, as she wrapped her arm with some falling apart bits of blanket that had once been on one of the beds. Her heart was still racing and she was kicking herself for not remembering where wolves showed up. 

“Stupid, fucking sloppy and stupid.” She muttered as she struggled to tie off the cloth with shaking hands. Another blast of cold air and Arthur stomped in with an armful of wood. How he’d managed to find any useable wood in this weather, Juniper couldn’t say.

“What are you grumbling?” He asked as he crouched in front of the stove, quickly lighting a fire inside it. 

“It was fucking stupid of me to forget about the damn wolves.” She snarled. Arthur looked over at her with a sigh. He watched a moment while she tried to tie her arm up with one hand. 

“Here,” Reaching into his satchel, Arthur pulled out clean bandages and stepped around the potbelly to crouch in front of her. Pulling the bloody rags from her arm he began wrapping it neatly. “Does it hurt?”

“No,” Juniper winced as his hand shifted onto one of the long tears. “Feels great.” Arthur’s eyes glanced up at her for a moment as he tied the ends off. Letting go of her arm, he kept his eyes on her. Juniper shifted uncomfortably for a moment. “I’ll be fine.” She said. “Me and John’ll have matching scars.” Holding up her arm, she laughed a little. Arthur seemed less than amused. Standing up, he walked to the stove. “Thanks.” Juniper called after him, feeling defeated and cold to her core. The fire was slowly pushing back the chill and she knew she should really get closer to it but she was feeling a bit too down on herself to move at the moment.

“It wasn’t stupid to forget where wolves show up in a story.” Arthur gave a heavy sigh. “Come over here by the fire before you freeze, idiot.” His tone compelled Juniper to shuffle over and sit beside the quickly warming stove. “It was stupid to not bring a coat up here. What do you think? You can hunt for treasure when you’re frozen solid?” She sighed, fighting off her shivers. 

“I guess I just didn’t think about that.” Wrapping her arms around her, she was careful to rest her bandaged arm on top of her knees. Arthur handed her a piece of cooked meat she gladly took and ate. Cold but filling, she felt a little better with food in her belly. “It’s a lot of money though.” Arthur laughed at her.

“Well, I think i got a spare blanket in my saddle bags. We’ll wrap you up real tight and go get it tomorrow. Gotta get you a coat, though.” A small smile slipped onto his face as he added another branch to the fire. 

“I’ll go get our bedrolls.” She offered, moving to stand. Arthur’s hand shot out and held her down by the shoulder. 

“Don’t bother, I got them already.” He pointed by the door where their bedrolls had been dropped when he brought in wood. “How’d you know this cabin was here?” He finally asked. Juniper leveled a look at him for a long moment before he raised his hands in surrender.

“I suppose I should know the answer to that by now.”

“It’d certainly make things easier on me if you’d just listen. I know what I'm talking about.” She pulled her bedroll out and unrolled it beside the stove. 

“Aw, I know you do.” Arthur agreed. “Hard to remember sometimes is all.” 

“You know, there’s actually a bison up around here. If we could take it down, it’ll make a great coat.” The thought of the warm coat she could get out of it’s pelt made her feel a little warmer already. Snuggling down into the bedroll, she shivered a bit against the cold. The stove was working to warm up the small cabin but it wasn’t airtight and Juniper was half dressed at best for the weather. “North side of Lake Isabella, easy kill I think.” 

“I think you’re stretching a bit much for someone who’s trying to survive in deep snow with a single cotton shirt.” Arthur grumbled.

“And underthings, can’t forget the weird ass underthings.” Juniper grumbled. Arthur was still sitting up, his journal out while he sketched lazily. 

“What are underthings like in your time?” He asked, half distracted. 

“Like, a third of the fabric. Simple, streamlined, and a woman’s underwear isn’t open at the crotch.” She laughed to herself and heard Arthur give a chuckle.

“Sounds more difficult to me.” He joked. 

“No corsets.” She sighed. “No corsets at all. What are you drawing?” Rolling over to face him, she watched as Arthur snapped the journal closed and stuffed it into his satchel. Juniper sighed, laying back. 

“I’ve already seen your journal. It was in the story.” She could hear Arthur stiffen up at her words. “You’ve got a talent, Arthur. Really, you’re wasting it by not showing anyone. Oh! You should give some of your drawings to Mr. Mason.”

“How do you know him?” The words came out a rush of grumbles but Arthur shook his head. “Never mind, what do you think he would do with them?”

“I dunno,” Juniper shrugged. “put them in a gallery, frame them. It’s nice work. People would want to look at it. You’d be considered _outsider art_ , it’s very popular with pretentious people. They’d pay top dollar for it.” A wind ripped loud through the mountains, whistling in a low moan and shoving cold air through the cracks and holes in the shack. Juniper curled up inside her bedroll, trying to pretend she wasn’t cold. Arthur gave a soft sigh.

“Come over here.” He was pulling her bedroll a bit and slipped a hand around her arm as Juniper crawled over to his bedroll. Opening it up, he wrapped it around himself and Juniper as she pressed against his body. “Stupid woman,” He grumbled as she rested her head against his chest. “Forgetting she’d be _cold_. How do you forget your damn coat?” Juniper smiled against his complaining, enjoying the rumble in his chest. The warmth of his body radiated out like a furnace. With the stove at her back and Arthur against her front, Juniper felt the cold seeping out of her. 

“I’d forget my head if it wasn’t screwed on.” She mumbled, tired and achy still. 

“You would, and then I’d have to give you mine.” Arthur joked as she drifted off to sleep, his heavy arm wrapping around her.

The next morning she woke up cold. The stove was still blazing, a pile of dry wood beside it. The bedroll was empty, Arthur gone somewhere. Juniper took a little time to wake up, sitting up and stretching out her stiff muscles. 

Her arm felt a bit better, it wasn’t throbbing anymore at least. She looked down at the bandages. A few red spots had bled through but it seemed to have stopped. A percolator sat on top of the stove, the smell of coffee calling to her. Arthur’s tin cup sat beside the bedroll, waiting for her. 

The warmth of the coffee spread through her chest as she swallowed. As terrible as the coffee was, it still pulled a groan of appreciation out of her. At least when Arthur used the percolator she didn’t have to spit out grounds after drinking. The door of the cabin open and Juniper shrank away from the blast of cold air that hit her in the back. 

“Oh, good. You’re up.” Arthur shuffled in, hunched against the cold outside.

“Where’d you go?” She asked, finishing off the warm coffee. Once she drained the cup, she set it down and began packing up the bedrolls. 

“I got you a surprise.” He grinned at her, picking up the cup and shoving it into his satchel. Taking the rolls from her, he motioned towards the door. “Let’s go get that money.” 

Juniper steeled herself against the cold of the outside and stepped out into the white. Arthur followed after, pushing past her to strap their bedrolls to the saddles. Flung across Bourbon’s flanks was a large, pale pelt.

“You got the bison?” She asked, excited that he had gotten it but a little disappointed to have missed the hunt. Realistically she knew she was in no position to go hunting but she still would have wanted to see it. Arthur nodded.

“I did. Right where you said it would be.” He pulled a blanket off the back of his horse and threw it over her shoulders. “It’ll make a real nice coat once we get it to a trapper.” Juniper nodded, looking out over the frozen lake. The spot on the map was close by at least. She began trudging through the snow, high as her knees, and past by the open grave of the unfortunate skater. Arthur trotted to catch up with her. “Not bringing the horses?”

“We’re going there.” She pointed out to the snow covered log offering a bridge to the small island in the lagoon. Arthur nodded, close behind her. They scrambled up the cold, slick stone of the mountains as she headed out to the log. Arthur held her hand as she balanced out to the middle of the log. The snow was slick and her feet slipped out and she landed hard on her crotch, wincing in pain but glad she didn’t fall off. Behind her she heard Arthur hiss in sympathy. 

“I’m alright.” She reassured him, reaching into the hole in the log. Pulling out the next map she gave a triumphant yell. Gingerly standing up, she carefully stepped off the log.

“Another map?” Arthur scowled as he slipped a hand onto her waist to help her off the log. Juniper nodded, opening it up to look it over as they headed back to the horses.

“Three maps, this one leads to the treasure. It’s a bit of a bitch to get to though, if I remember correctly.” She folded the map up and stuffed it into her satchel. “But it’s out of this damned snow at least.” Holding the blanket tighter around her shoulders, she pulled herself up into Bulletface’s saddle. Arthur hmm’d as she spoke, mounting up and following her as she lead them out of the mountains. 

“Seems you’re going to get yourself hurt.” He grumbled after a moment. Juniper held her arm up, the bandages plain. “More hurt I mean. Is it really worth it?” At his question, Juniper pulled up sharp, staring him down with a set jaw.

“I won’t watch you die again.” She said, her voice hard. Arthur looked like he’d been punched in the gut by her words. Kicking hard, she urged Bulletface into a gallop and Arthur had to ride hard to keep up. There was no room for talk as she raced out of the cold.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Seemed like it was time for another sex scene


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> See, I'm still updating. Promise.

They rode to the trapper outside of Strawberry a few days later. The new coat he made for Juniper fit her like a glove and was warmer than she'd thought it would be. Despite sweating a bit in it, she insisted on wearing it for a while, at least until she couldn't stand it anymore. Arthur smirked at her as she rode beside him. 

"Alright, I'll admit. It's a very nice coat." Arthur chuckled a bit. Juniper nodded as she shrugged out of it and stuffed it into her saddle bag. 

"Of course it is. You just wait until I get that bear Hosea tried to kill. It's the best hat." She bragged. The two laughed only to be cut short by gunfire. Arthur pulled up sharp as they turned their heads towards the sound. Not waiting for him to react, Juniper kicked Bulletface into a gallop and raced towards it. Arthur yelled after her in frustration. 

Around the bend a stagecoach was stopped, the stage driver stood at gunpoint while two O'Driscolls aimed at his face. Juniper was firing off, catching one in the head without waiting. He dropped to the ground and stage driver darted under the coach as the O'Driscolls turned their attention at the two riders. A third O'Driscoll popped out from behind the stage to her left and a bullet grazed across Juniper's back. There was no time to think about the pain burning across her back. She gritted her teeth and shot her Schofield at him. He dropped and Arthur caught the other one in the neck. The gunfire died off and the stage driver crawled out from his hiding spot. 

"You saved my life!" He seemed a bit shook and it showed in his trembling hands. "Thank you. The stage company is going to write this off as stolen so if you can get the lock box open it's yours. Ain't stealing if it's already been stolen." Running off to a horse the O'Driscolls had left behind, he rode away at a speedy clip. Juniper slipped off her mount and pulled a small pouch out of Bulletface's saddlebag. 

"You're an idiot." Arthur growled at her, watching her from Bourbon's back. "Running in head first like that, you're lucky you didn't get shot." She rolled her eyes at him.

"Uh, I did get shot." Juniper told him, pausing to turn her back to him for a second. He swore at her but went silent as she pulled a pick out of the small pouch and started working on the lock of the stagecoach. The metal picks clicked a little as she slid them into place and started setting the pins. Juniper's face screwed up as she concentrated. 

"Did Abigail show you how to do that?" Arthur asked, curious. His earlier anger at her forgotten. Juniper shook her head.

"Actually, I uh, already knew how to do this. Hosea gave me the picks though." She waved the pouch in the air to show him before returning her attention to the lock. "I'm not very good at it though." As she spoke, the lock popped open and the side of the lock box fell open. "Good enough, though." 

"Could have just shot it." Arthur grumbled. Juniper ignored him, pulling out a few odds and ends that would sell well at a fence. 

"Where's the fun in that?" When she turned, she caught him glowering at her. Her smirk fell into an annoyed glare in return. Climbing up on Bulletface, she turned the horse in the direction of camp. Her shoulder was starting to ache and burn as the adrenaline wore off. 

"I don't know. Where's the fun in getting yourself shot?" He snarled, angry again. 

"It's just a graze, you damn nanny goat." She didn't like the way he was getting angry at her for simply doing what he would have done on his own. Arthur scoffed, falling silent as they rode. Juniper was glad for it, gave her time to think but the graze started to burn more as her they rode on. By the time they got back to camp it was downright painful, making roll her shoulder in a vain attempt to adjust it to a less painful position. Moving it only made her wince. 

Dutch called out to them as Juniper turned to hand Arthur the gold bars they'd found. He looked down at them and back up to her face. She didn't let go of them for a moment.

"Go tell Herr Strauss the debt is paid. Save whatever else is left to pay off any other debt he makes you go collect." His eyes watched her, twinkling in the dying light of evening. It felt like he was taking her words to heart. "You don't have to be what he thinks you are, Arthur." 

"Herr Strauss doesn't tell me who I am." He struggled with her comment, confused a little but still defensive. 

"Not Herr Strauss." Juniper hissed as Dutch called out to them again. Her eyes darted to the side where he stood in front of his tent and back to Arthur. The confused tension in his brow lessened as he understood. Satisfied, Juniper let go of the gold bars and turned to smiled at Dutch. 

"Miss Juniper!" He held his hands out in a welcome. "I don't think I complimented you on what I hear was an excellent job shooting O'Driscolls." She had to admit he certainly had an infection way of talking. A smile slipped onto her face against her will. 

"Thank you, Dutch. I'm not well practiced but I can certainly put a bullet in a man." She rolled her shoulder again, feeling dried blood pull at the skin around the graze. It must be deeper than she thought. 

"Since you have firmly cemented yourself as an excellent shootist amongst our group, I think it's time you took some guard duties on." He suggested softly, obviously expecting her to object. For a moment Juniper was quiet, watching him, and Dutch shifted uncomfortably under gaze. 

"Of course, Dutch." She finally said, her smile never faltering. "Gotta pull my weight. I wouldn't mind a night shift every now and then, I'm a bit of a night owl." Dutch visibly relaxed at her response and Juniper was a little surprised to see him so apprehensive around her. She made a mental note to be more obviously at ease around him. It wouldn't do for Dutch to think she didn't have any faith in him, at least not yet anyways. 

"Excellent to hear! Perhaps you could start tonight?" He laid a hand heavily on her injured shoulder and Juniper winced involuntarily. "Perhaps not." Pulling his hand back, he saw a shiny bit of red on his fingertips. "Miss Juniper, it would appear you've gotten yourself hurt."

"Just a graze, Dutch." She brushed off his concern, waving her hand to dispel his attention. He was even less dissauded than Arthur had been. 

"Well, you must get it seen to." His brows furrowed as his tone grew stern. Behind her, Arthur was walking up. 

"I'll make sure she gets it taken care of. Come on, Juniper. I'll patch you up." He seemed less angry now than he had been before. A heavy hand patted her uninjured side and Arthur steered her off towards his tent. Juniper weighed her options for a minute, sure Miss Grimshaw would be far less gentle than Arthur, and followed him. 

In his tent, he turned a chair to rest against the table. Juniper sat down, hugging the back of the chair as she straddled it. Rolling her shoulder painfully again, she shrugged out of her shirt, leaving her corset on. 

"Shit, June." Arthur hissed in sympathy. A wet cloth wiped at her aching shoulder, stinging the whole way. "A hair further and that bullet would have buried itself in you. You were reckless." It was clear Arthur was trying to be a gentle as he could be with the graze. Even so, it hurt. 

"You're reckless and no one yells at you." She argued with him, letting her attention wander to his table. The framed photo of his mother stared at her and Juniper reached out to get a closer look at it. His mother, Beatrice, stared wide eyed at the camera. She imagined that his mother had the same colored eyes as him. 

"Pretty sure no one cares if I get shot." He joked. "This is deep enough I need to sew it up." He gave a heavy sigh, looking at it for a minute. Juniper set the picture down. 

"You know that's not true." She twisted in her seat to look at him, regretting the movement almost immediately. Arthur looked away, ducking his head so the brim of his hat covered his eyes before stepping back. 

"I gotta go get some needle and thread. Stay." He raised his hand up as if commanding a dog and Juniper scowled at him. Giving a dissatisfied grumble, she turned back to look at the table. A letter laid there, in front of it and Juniper grabbed it up. She read over the sloppy cursive for a second, a small bit of anger rising inside her as she recognized who it was from. As Arthur's footsteps approached, she set it back down fight off her scowl. 

"Ain't it rude to read someone else's letters?" Arthur chided her, setting a spool of thread and a needle down on the table.

"Technically, if it was sent by post it's not just rude, it's a felony." Juniper responded quickly. Arthur gave a small laugh, handing her a bottle of whiskey. He waited as she took a long slug from the bottle before beginning to sew up the line along her back shoulder. 

"Suppose you already know about Mary." He asked after a silent moment. Juniper gritted her teeth as the thread pulled through her skin.

"I do." She admitted, her voice tight and low in pain. It wasn't a feeling she liked and she took another heavy swig from the bottle. "Suppose I can't dissuade you from seeing her?" 

"Am I going to get hurt if I do?" He asked, giving a couple of tugs on the thread as he finished up. It was enough to make her swallow a grunt while he tied off the thread.

"What do you think?" Her response was curt and internally she knew he didn't deserve her tongue. Arthur only sighed, setting the needle down on the table. "Sorry. I know you really love her." She was glad she was facing away from him, swallowing hard. His broad hand rested against her side, the pad of his thumb grazing feather light against the sewn wound. 

"Not like I used to." He admitted as he wrapped gauze around her shoulder. Once he was satisfied with his work, he gave a gentle pat to her shoulder and stepped back. Juniper stood up and picked her shirt back up, looking at the bloody slice through it. Blood had soaked into a large stain across the back. No amount of attention from Tilly would get that out. Juniper sighed to herself. She had liked that shirt. 

"Guess I'll need to get a new shirt tomorrow." She said with a laugh."Thanks for sewing me up." Sure Dutch would still want her on guard duty for the night, she gave a small salute to him before walking off to get her rifle and borrow a shirt from someone. "See you later, Morgan."

Abigail had happily lent her a blouse, admiring Arthur's stitching before Juniper managed to put it on. Her delicate hand trailed softly along the top of her corset, a few inches below the graze. A bit of electricity shot through her at the touch and it suddenly felt more intimate. 

"Maybe Arthur should be darning with us. He's a sight better at it than you are." Juniper stuck her tongue out at the woman before shrugging into the shirt. Abigail moved to help her with the cuff. Juniper's own wrists were thicker than Abigail's and she needed the cuffs undone to finish pulling it on. As she rolled the cuffs back, her thumb trailed along the fresh and raw rips along her forearm. 

"He stitch this up too?" Abigail asked, clearly mocking her.

"Naw, that was my own patented forget-about-it method." Juniper smirked as she started to button up the blouse. "Some wolves attacked us, one of them tried to take a bite out of me." Abigail's mouth was pressed into a thin line and quirked down on one side. Juniper was sure she'd seen that look directed at John before.

"You're an idiot. That needs to be cleaned and bandaged. Like hell you're doing guard duty tonight." Abigail grabbed her uninjured wrist and began pulling her towards John's tent, a serious tone in her step. John was sitting on his cot, a look of shock crossing his face when Abigail shoved Juniper next to him. She turned her back on the two and began digging through a crate in the corner of the tent. 

"What'd you do?" John half whispered to her in the tone one inmate might ask another. Juniper smirked and started to answer but Abigail cut her off. 

"She's a big a fool as you, John." Whirling back around, she dropped a small bag into Juniper's lap and pulled out a bottle. "Got herself attacked by wolves," Reaching out, she jerked the injured arm forward, making Juniper hiss in pain. Shoving the cuff of the sleeve back past her elbow, Abigail began to clean the open wound. 

"We're twinsies." Juniper joked, making John laugh a little. She shook her arm to emphasize the soon to be scars only for Abigail to jerk it back and give a light slap to her cheek. 

"You just let it sit open? The whole ride back?" Abigail clearly couldn't believe the amount Juniper's wits failed her. 

"Not the whole way, Arthur gave me some clean rags to hold over it until it stopped bleeding. It was only like, two days." Juniper felt like that was a good answer but it obviously wasn't the way Abigail glared at her. Once she finished cleaning it out, Abigail smeared a salve across the jagged lines before wrapping her forearm in clean gauze. 

"If Arthur let this wound sit like this for two days, I owe him a slap. And you for being so stupid." She sounded beyond exasperated with Juniper. 

"Aw, leave her be Abi. It isn't infect or anything." John tried to defend her which made Juniper feel a little pleased. Abigail gave a sigh, looking over her work for a minute. The tightness in her forehead softened and the scowl dropped, just a hair. 

"June, you need your arm to shoot." Her hand slipped down the forearm to Juniper's palm, holding it just a minute. "If you get hurt again, at least come let me clean it up. Or Arthur." Abigail's hand lingered just a bit longer as she eyed Juniper. "Now, I need to go discuss with Arthur what exactly needs to be done with _open_ wounds." Off Abigail marched, her scowl had returned and Juniper was left sitting, startled by her freshly bandaged arm. John looked about as surprised by the hurricane of Abigail blowing in and out. 

"Wolves really attack you?" He asked after a second, making Juniper laugh. She nodded, returning to buttoning up her blouse since Abigail had interrupted her and half her shirt hung open. Juniper caught it when John's eyes glanced downward for just a second. 

"Yep, startled Bulletface, got thrown. I stopped one from biting my by putting my arm in his mouth." She explained. John nodded, looking away from Juniper quickly. 

"Probably better than stopping it with your face." They laughed at his joke." Your face is too nice to ugly up." John seemed to realize what he'd said only after he said it. A blush raised to his cheeks and he turned his face away. Juniper reached out, running her thumb across the familiar scars, still fresh with stitches. 

"The scars look good on you." Was all she said before realizing maybe she was going too far with someone who was as good as married. Standing up to put an end to the entire situation, Juniper walked quickly out of the tent before John felt compelled to say anything. 

 

She woke near noon the next day, surprised that Grimshaw had let her sleep in. Tilly was doing laundry to one side of the ladies wagon, seemingly trying to do it quietly. When she noticed Juniper struggling awake, she smiled over.

"Arthur mentioned you were hurt while ya'll were out riding. You okay?" She pulled a shirt out of the wash water to inspect a spot on it. 

"Yeah, just a few cuts and scrapes." Juniper shook her head, running a hand through her tangled hair. "Arthur already leave for the day?" Tilly answered an affirmative hum as she stood up to wring the shirt out. "Well, I got to head into town for a new shirt, need anything?" Juniper asked, grabbing up her hat and standing up. Her shoulder pulled a bit but felt better at least. 

"No, I'm fine. You'd better hurry or Grimshaw will have you doing something." Tilly grinned at her, glancing around conspiratorially. Juniper smirked at the woman before darting off to her horse.

She rode Bulletface at a slow walk through the town, walking up past the smaller saloon. It was enjoyable to just people watch in Valentine. A figure sat hunched on the steps of the church, reading. Juniper could pick out that silhouette in her sleep. Arthur closed up his journal, not seeing Juniper yet. Her heart caught a little bit as she realized what he had been doing. She remembered this part.

“Hey cowboy!” She called out. Arthur looked up at her as she walked up to him, Bulletface face snorting in excitement at seeing him. The pitiful look in his eyes made her frown a bit. Arthur quickly looked down, his hands petting Bulletface’s muzzle of their own accord. 

“You went to see her, didn’t you?” Arthur didn’t ask how she knew, he seemed to finally be accepting that Juniper just knew things. He shrugged, trying to act indifferent but failing. Juniper sighed heavy, knowing how he was feeling.

“Come on, get your horse. We’ll taking a trip.” She turned Bulletface away from Arthur, moving towards Bourbon hitched at the sheriff's building. Arthur didn’t question her, he simply mounted and watched her expectantly. Juniper turned to start trotting out of town, Arthur following silently behind.

“So Arthur, you went to see Mary?” Juniper tried to broach the topic, see if he wanted to talk about it.

“Yeah, I guess I did.” He sounded regretful. A bit of anger built up in her gut.

“Saved her brother, right? And the best she can give you is ‘Oh Orther, you’ll never change!’” Juniper made a mocking attempt at Mary’s voice. 

“Well, she’s right.” That caught her. Pulling up sharp, she whipped Bulletface around so she could stare Arthur down.

“No, she’s not.” She set her jaw as Arthur looked away from her glare. “She’s a manipulative creature who, whether she knows it or not, is pulling all your strings. And I think you know that.” For a moment neither said anything. Arthur only gave a shrug. Dissatisfied, Juniper turned back to the trail and trotted on. “Not that she can help it, with a father like that her head’s not on right. Probably the only way she’s ever seen people treat each other.” A heavy sigh left her, turning the horses down a path that followed a river for a while. 

“Does she love me?” His voice came from behind her, almost too soft to catch. Her anger deflated, feeling at a loss to help him feel better.

“I don’t know. Maybe as much as someone like that can love a person other than themselves. Love them for what they can do for them, not for who they are.” A thought occurred to her. “Kinda like Dutch that way, I guess.”

“Dutch?” His voice was louder, ready to argue.

“Yeah, look at the people around him! He finds people at their lowest, does the bare minimum to help them and then demands total control, unquestioning loyalty, some god damned faith.” She shook her fist, imitating Dutch. “To him people are only as good as what they can do for him.”

“You sound damned sure of yourself.” Arthur growled, almost angry. Juniper shrugged, the river crossing was coming up and the biting cold water reached to her boots. 

“I’ve known people like him before.” A bit of sadness crept into her voice. “Trust me, when you’re not worth anything to him any more, he’ll just walk away. I don't have to see the future to know that. I've experienced it. I'd tell you to not see her again but we both know you can't stay away from her."

"Why? Why can't I tell her no?" He asked. Juniper almost winced to hear the pain in his voice. 

"Because you're a good person, with a big heart and she's good at using that." 

"I'm not a good man." Arthur grumbled. Juniper rolled her eyes with a heavy sigh. 

"Arthur, just because you're a bad guy, doesn't mean you're a _bad guy_." Arthur grew quiet at her words. "Aren't all those stupid books Mary Beth reads full of outlaws who do good things? Who save people? You're worth more than Mary, even if you don't think so." Her hands gesticulated as she talked. 

"I've killed people." He argued with her. Juniper shrugged. "She was right to leave me."

"I didn't say she wasn't. It was probably the right idea for you two to break up, but the way she strings you along. Calling on you only when she needs something, only to turn it around and throw it in your face once she gets what she wants. It's just...it's bullshit." A heavy sigh left her, of course he knew it was bullshit. That wasn't the problem, the problem was he felt like he deserved it. 

"Where are we going, anyways?" He asked curiously. The forest around them opened up into a long stretch of meadow dusted in lupine, mountains framing the sky. 

"My favorite place, Little Creek River." She led the horses in a slow walk through the tall grass. Ahead of them, pronghorns scattered in surprise. "Thought a bit of a ride and some nice scenery might clear your head." A glance over her shoulder at him told her he was at least as appreciative of the scenery as she was. 

"Well, it doesn't hurt." He said, looking up at the snow capped mountains. 

They ate lunch in the grass, a horse blanket spread out between them. The horses grazed nearby, lazily wandering around them as they sat beside the thin Little Creek River. Arthur had had the mind to have actual food in his saddlebags while Juniper had almost nothing but salted offal. He handed her a hunk of hard cheese and a crust of bread which she gladly took. 

"You remember what you said to me?" Arthur asked suddenly, leaning back on the blanket. Juniper quirked an eye at him over the hard bread. 

"You mean, what I said last time we had sex?" She clarified for him. He nodded, turning away and Juniper stifled her snicker. Arthur's embarrassment was endearing. "about Charles. And me. And you." Her words were careful because she knew she'd break into laughter and it would squash any chance she had. "Yes, I remember. Did you have a question?"

"If, and I'm not saying I will, but if I said yes. What would you want to happen?" His eyes turned back to her and it was Juniper's turn to blush a bit under his gaze. 

"Well, I suppose it depends on what you two wanted to do." Dusting her hands off on her knees, she crawled across the blanket to straddle Arthur. "But I'm creative, and willing." Cocking her hips forward, she rubbed against his crotch. Even through his thick pants, she could feel a bulge forming.

He seemed caught by surprise, falling back against the blanket looking up at her. Juniper leaned in close, nipping at his neck as her hips rubbed up against him again in a slow rhythm. She heard his breath catch. Raising her head to whisper in his ear, she gripped her hand on his hip tightly. 

"But what I'd really want, is you and Charles, both buried so deep in me you'll never come out." Her voice was hoarse, thick and heavy as she rutted against him. He was straining tightly against his clothes and Juniper had no intention of freeing him. Arthur's hand wrapped around her wrist next to his head only for her to flip his hand around and grab up his other. Holding his hands above his head, she relished the long groan she drew with just a shift of herself. 

"Past that, up to you I suppose." Leaving a warm, wet trail behind her, she dragged her tongue along his jaw. A ruddy flush was spread across his cheeks and nose as his breath kept hitching and his hips started bucking back against her. Letting go of some control, she let his eager thrusts set the pace, though she still didn't let his hands go. 

"June." It was soft and breathy, begging. Her teeth dragged along his neck to his collarbone where she left wet, sloppy kisses.

"Come for me, Arthur. Let me hear you." She whispered into his ear. The moans Arthur started to make were more frantic, uncontrolled and Juniper knew she had him close. With a shaky yell, volume unheeded out in the wilds, Arthur flexed against her. His hands flew out of her grasp to wrap around her tight, his face buried in her neck. 

Sitting back onto his legs, she pulled him to sit up and kept her arms around him. He was pressing half awake kisses into the skin of her neck while his hands grasped at the fabric of her shirt. Her hand ran through his soft hair as she let him come down slowly. A long moment passed before Arthur let out a shuddering breath and pulled back to look at her. Juniper smiled at him, giving him a quick peck on the cheek before untangling herself from him and gathering up what few things that had been left scattered across the blanket. 

"Damn June." Arthur said, almost confused. He adjusted his clothing, shifting uncomfortably. 

"We should get heading back, there are things to do back at camp." She smirked. Still a bit dazed, he stood up and picked up the blanket anyways. 

"I-I think yes I would want to." He said once they were mounted up and riding out. Juniper didn't press him, she just gave a sharp nod.


	10. Chapter 10

They rode into camp in the late afternoon. If anyone noticed they were gone the whole day, no one said anything. But maybe Abigail gave a knowing smirk, Juniper wasn't quite sure. She shook it off, of course Abigail would notice. That woman couldn't stop nosing into her business in the absolute friendliest way. It made her smile inwardly, it'd be a long while since she'd had a close female friend. 

She found Hosea sitting at the table beside Dutch's tent, reading the newspaper. Pearson's stew was still bubbling over the fire so she helped herself to a bowl before sitting down across from him. He tilted the corner of his newspaper down to give a nod of hello as she sat. 

"You know, I don't know why y'all complain so damn much about Pearson's stew. It's a little bland but it's not bad at all." Juniper said around mouthfuls.

"Thank you!" Pearson said with exasperation as he passed by.

"Still bland, Pearson! Use some damn herbs! They are literally everywhere!" She yelled after him. Across the table, Hosea snickered to himself. Juniper glanced up, a half smile on her face.

"I seem to remember you were supposed to be helping Pearson out." He said, matter of factly. Juniper shrugged.

"Suppose I was."

"You're a capable young woman, Juniper." He started off, sounding like he was about to begin a lecture. 

"Hosea, I'm thirty four, I ain't young." She cut him off, still eating. A big chunk of venison sat on her spoon and she bit into it, reasonably sure Charles had shot it. Hosea coughed at the interruption.

"You're young to me." He argued with her. "You get a chance to try out those picks I gave you?" The newspaper was folded up and set on the table. Juniper nodded as she swallowed the meat in her mouth. 

"Yeah, Arthur was impressed I think." She was scraping the last of the stew down her throat and thinking about getting another bowl. 

"Might I ask how you know how to do that?" He was curious, almost deviously so. Juniper shrugged, eyeing the stew pot.

"I was bored, taught myself. It's not like it's _hard_." She watched as Abigail and Jack walked up to the pot of stew and Abigail handed Jack a bowl. Juniper sighed and thought better about getting a second bowl for herself. 

"Yes," Hosea hummed to himself for a second. "And Abigail mentioned she'd been teaching you a bit of pickpocketing?" Juniper nodded, returning her gaze to the old man. "Would you be interested in doing a job with me?" Her attention was suddenly rapt.

"Very much so, on one condition." Hosea hooked his foot over the opposite knee and leaned back a bit. He crossed his arms, obviously expecting something big in return. "You teach me how to do that gun spinning trick." She grinned as he broke out into laughter. 

"I think I can handle that. Abigail says you're a fast student." Finished with her food, Juniper stood to take the bowl back to the chuckwagon. "Find me tomorrow and I'll tell you about the job. Maybe you could dress up a little modestly..." His eyes traveled up to her hair. "And maybe a wig?"

"Don't worry about the hair, and yes I'll wear a dress." She rapt the table with her knuckles before walking off to rinse her dish off. As she stood over the wash basin Abigail caught Juniper by the arm, smirking at her. She knew the woman was up to something, but wasn't exactly sure. She gave a cautious side eye to her friend.

"Saw you riding back with Arthur, you challenge him to another drinking contest?" The smirk on her face set Juniper laughing. 

"I don't always have to liquor up the men, you know. _Sometimes_ they'll fuck me sober." She argued back.

"Oi! I'll fuck you whenever you want!" Sean yelled from the other side of the chuckwagon, making Juniper snort. 

"I don't fuck idiots!" She yelled back, getting a dejected grumble in response. "Now, what do you want?" Abigail scowled playfully at her, slapping her shoulder lightly. 

"Oh, you awful woman." Abigail laughed as she insulted her. "I do want to talk to you, though." She began pulling Juniper away from camp, into the trees. 

"There it is. What do you want?" She was curious. Abigail had been helping her fit in with the group and little Jack was such fun to play with. It felt like almost required for her to help her out.

"I, well, Juniper you've become a good friend of mine." Abigail began, surprisingly indirect. "You mean a great deal to me, I mean, we've grown real close, haven't we?"

"Shit, Abigail, just spit it out. You're usually good at that." Juniper kept her voice low while glancing over her shoulder. 

"Fine. Would you like to join John and me in Valentine for the night?" She spit the words out, almost angry at Juniper for goading her. A breath left Juniper and her face went blank in surprise. That had certainly not been what she'd been expecting. 

"For the night?" She wanted to be very clear on this. "Like, in the same bed?" Juniper didn't think her eyebrows could get any higher. 

"Yes, you dull woman. You're as thick as John, sometimes." Abigail scowled enough for Juniper to laugh, her hand circling Juniper's wrist tightly. "You, and me, and John. If you don't want to, I won't ask again. But if you wanted...well, I'd feel a fool if I didn't ask." Juniper was still laughing.

"Well, damn Abigail. I thought you were going to ask for something hard to do." 

"Is that a yes?" Abigail's hand tightened around Juniper's wrist and an eagerness crept into her voice.

"Yes, I'm surprised but yes." She was still laughing, mostly in surprise. "Is John okay with this?" She asked as Abigail began pulling her back out of the trees. Abigail scoffed.

"Oh, that idiot? Of course he is. What man wouldn't want two beautiful women." She bumped her shoulder against Juniper's and smiled, pleased with herself. 

"Aw, you think I'm beautiful." Juniper couldn't help but feel a little pleased. "So, you really want me to do this?" Abigail nodded enthusiastically. "I mean, sleeping around is one thing but I kind of make a point to not sleep with someone who's taken."

"Well, consider this an invitation." Abigail looked past Juniper, around camp. "I asked him to go into town with me. He said he needed to talk to Arthur first, so once he's ready we'll head out."

"You've done this before?" She couldn't quite believe that but it seemed a bit too thought out. Abigail shook her head, laughing. 

"No, not at all. I just, we both thought maybe you'd want to." Juniper couldn't quite believe her ears.

"Hey, I don't have any complaints." Juniper nodded slowly. "It's not even the weirdest situation I've been in, honestly." 

"Oh look, there's Arthur now." Abigail pointed past her. Juniper turned to see Miss Grimshaw talking with Arthur behind Dutch's tent. He gave the old woman a swift nod before walking past the campfire. 

"Well, I better go get the wagon ready before Miss Grimshaw gives me a less pleasant job." Abigail grabbed her hand and gave it a squeeze before letting her go.

"I need to speak with Arthur first, anyways." She called after the quickly retreating woman. As she walked across camp, Juniper felt a bit of excited electricity run through her. 

Arthur was walking away from John as she reached the other side of camp. He paused when he saw her, John walking past without much thought.

"You eavesdropping?" He looked down at her. Juniper grinned.

"Don't have to. No, Abigail wanted me to head into town with John and her for some supplies." As she said that, she caught John freeze in place out of the corner of her eyes. It took most of her strength not to smirk at that. 

"Anything I should know about this idea John has?" Arthur asked, he glanced at John curiously before the man continued walking towards the wagon. 

"Yeah, probably." Juniper gave a long, heavy sigh as she thought. Suddenly Arthur reached out to touch her right wrist. 

"Do you know your hand shakes when you're thinking?" He asked. "You'd be shit at poker." A playful smile danced around his eyes. Juniper looked down at her wrist that he held, his calloused thumb rubbing against the soft skin on the inside.

"I'm not always aware of it, no. Sometimes I do it when I'm stressed out too." 

"You stressed, June?" Arthur stepped closer, his hand still gently holding her wrist, thumb rubbing a soft circle against her skin.

"Not right now." She liked the way he drawled her name when he was being intimate. "The old shack you park the wagon next to, there's fifty bucks hidden behind a loose brick in the basement." His smile finally made it to his lips.

"I'll buy you something nice." He offered. Juniper shook her head, finally slipping her hand free from his. 

"You couldn't afford me, Morgan." She joked before turning to see John and Abigail up in a wagon, waiting for her. His soft chuckle followed after her. John eyed her as she sprung up into the seat beside Abigail, her rifle across her lap. Without a word, he snapped the reins and sent the drafts pulling the wagon away from camp.

"You agreed to this?" He asked, once they were out on the road. 

"Don't sound so disappointed, Marston. A girl could get insulted." She laughed as a blush rose on his cheeks.

"I'm not disappointed, I just thought you were Arthur's girl. Don't exactly want him mad at me." He had a fair point. Juniper nodded, pulling a cigarette out of her bag and lighting it.

"Admirable, but misplaced. I am no one's girl but my own. I do like Arthur, though." She offered Abigail a cigarette after a second and she took it with a nod of thanks. 

"Who doesn't?" Abigail joked as she lit it for her, tossing the extinguished match away from them. 

"Arthur." Juniper joked. The three laughed comfortably together for a moment. Juniper glanced down to see Abigail had slid just a little bit closer to her as they laughed. 

A wagon rushed across the road, pulling up sharp as men jumped down with weapons drawn. Juniper reacted first. The moment she saw the wagon moving out of the trees she had pushed Abigail on her side, against John's lap and stood up on the seat. Her feet straddled Abigail's middle as she raised her rifle and took a deep breath. Time slowed down and she was able to quickly get three headshots off before she had to take another breath. John caught the last two men in the neck and they fell to the ground, clutching their wounds and moaning loudly. Juniper took another deep breath and scanned the area for more attackers. Asides from the cries of the slowly dying men, the world was calm. 

Slowly, cautiously, Juniper sat back down and rested her rifle across her lap again. She glanced to her side as Abigail slowly sat up. Both John and her were watching Juniper closely. They didn't say anything for a long time.

"Are you okay, Abigail?" Juniper finally asked. 

"I'm fine." She looked over her shoulder to John and then back to Juniper. "John said you were a fair shot but that was amazing." There was a small amount of pride Juniper felt at the words. 

"You were firing before I even realized what was happening, Jesus." John seemed to finally come to his senses and snapped the reins. The horses threw themselves into their harnesses and the wagon began to move around the corpses. 

"I've seen an ambush or two before, I knew what was coming." She adjusted the grip on her rifle.

"That's right, you're a fortune teller, ain't you?" John asked as they cleared the train tracks towards Valentine. "So tell me about this train robbery."

"Oh, it goes..." She tried to think of a word that would work. "You get the money and everyone gets away."

"That doesn't mean it goes well." Abigail said flatly. Juniper shrugged. "John, take her with you on the job." She turned to look at John who cringed away from her as she shoved his shoulder.

"Already got Charles and Arthur on it..." He started to argue.

 

"And Sean." Juniper corrected him. His head shot around to look at her.

"Sean? That loud mouthed idiot? No wonder the job doesn't go smoothly. Juniper, you come with us and keep him from screwing it up." He was almost laughing.

"Don't mind splitting the money?" She asked around Abigail. The wagon pulled to a stop in front of the stable. 

"Naw, not if I'm going to have to split it with Sean too." He hopped down from the wagon and held a hand up for Abigail, helping her down. Juniper jumped down her side and slung her rifle over her back. "I'm going to get some supplies for the job. You two go enjoy yourselves in the saloon. I'll meet up with you in a bit." 

Abigail took Juniper's arm and steered her towards the saloon. As the two women walked down the sidewalk, Abigail brushed against a man who didn't seem to even notice. Juniper watched as she slipped her closed fist into her pocket in a fluid, practiced motion. She smirked as Abigail did it again.

"So is everybody else going to pay for our drinks?" Juniper finally said as they walked into the saloon. Abigail shushed her while giggling.

"Our room for the night, too." The woman added before pulling Juniper after her to the bar. They were well into their second beers by the time John showed up on the opposite side of Juniper. He tossed a coin on the bar and took a bottle for himself. 

"What are you two hens cackling about?" He asked. Juniper laughed a little harder, slamming back her beer. 

"Well, I don't know about Abi, but I'm cackling at you two skulking around before asking me to come with you." She set the empty bottle down and leaned against the bar. Abigail snickered but glanced to John.

"Well, we didn't want to scare you off." He said sheepishly, turning away as he chugged his beer. Juniper glanced between the two at her sides.

"Do you think I scare easy, John?" She leaned on her elbow, giving him a hard look that brought a blush up his neck. From his reaction, Juniper suspected he was the one who scared easy. 

"Obviously not." He said around the mouth of the beer bottle. She heard Abigail sigh in annoyance behind her.

"I tried to tell you, you idiot." Abigail chastised him. Juniper raised a hand to calm the woman.

"Hey, go easy on him. This isn't something a person can do if they're unsure about it." She tried to keep the easily flared tempers down. 

"Thank you!" John said, setting his bottle down on the bar a little too hard.

"Don't you start too." Juniper shot him a look. "Jesus, you guys bicker like it's your job. Just cut it out for one night." The both looked cowed by her. "I can't even imagine the weird shit you do in bed."

"Well," Abigail's hand slipped over Juniper's. "you're going to find out."

The clerk at the hotel didn't even raise an eyebrow when John followed Juniper and Abigail up the stairs to their room. John's hand strayed to Juniper's waist as Abigail unlocked the door. Once inside, he tightened his grip and shoved her back against the wall with a thud. Covering her mouth with his, he licked and nipped until she opened her lips and his tongue plunged inside. Abigail shut the door, laughing at them as she did. Juniper grabbed a handful of John's hair and jerked his head back to get a breath. The roguish grin spread across his face was infectious. 

"Jesus, John. You're gonna suffocate the poor girl." Abigail joked, grabbing him by the arm and pulling him to the bed.

"At least I'd die happy." Juniper said, following the two. John sat on the edge of the bed and Juniper straddled his lap, her fingers working to quickly undo buttons and help him shed his clothes. John's hand, still gloved, reached up to hold her upper arms as she worked her way through his clothes.

"I will never get over how many damn layers y'all wear." Juniper joked. "It's hot enough to make a person sweat and everyone is wearing at least three layers of cotton." John's hands slipped to her waist, tightening. Juniper looked up through her lashes to see a flush of arousal rising to his face. Behind her, Abigail was reaching around to unbutton her shirt.

"It can make for some nice anticipation." Abigail suggested, once she'd gotten a few buttons undone she plunged her hand inside Juniper's shirt to caress her breasts. Deft fingers quickly found a nipple and rolled it. Juniper gave a hiss, closing her eyes and stalling for a moment as a shock of arousal spread out from her core. John laughed, low and husky as he watched her. Juniper relinquished her hold on his shirt and let Abigail pull her own from her shoulders, leaving her with the corset and chemise still on. John slid his hands along the sides of the corset, up to her bare chest. His eyes watched has she leaned her head back and his gloved hand wrapped around her throat, a heavy thumb rubbing against her skin. 

"Leave the gloves on." Juniper groaned. John smirked, sliding his hands down to undo the hooks in the front of her corset. She let out a heavy sigh of relief. "God, I appreciate the support when I'm riding but I miss bras." The words slipped out before she could think. John didn't seem to be listening, too busy undoing her belt and pants. Abigail caught it though.

"What's a bra?" She asked, pulling Juniper's chemise over her head before returning her less than delicate care to the now fully exposed breasts. Juniper tried to think of a good answer but Abigail quickly denied her the use of her brain with expert attention to the quickly stiffening nipples. 

"Support for..." She moaned, her head falling back against Abigail's shoulder. "breasts. Less..." A heavy hiss slipped out of her as Abigail pinched one nipple hard. "less restrictive." Abigail bent her head down to leave harsh, wet kisses along Juniper's neck. John finally managed to loosen her pants and slipped a hand inside, quickly rubbing against her mound. The supply leather of his glove slid up her bare side. 

"Let's get these pants off of you." He said, his voice gruff and heavy. Moving his hands to her hips, he helped her stand up before ripping her pants and drawers down. Fully exposed, Juniper couldn't care. Not with the moans Abigail was wringing from her with just her hands on her breasts. John pulled her back into his lap, rubbing the bulge in his pants against her bare mound. Juniper raised her hands in an attempt to grab his belt buckle only for John to catch her wrists. 

"Oh no, you're ours tonight, June." His scratchy voice sent shivers down her spine. Strong arms wrapped around her waist and threw her into the bed, roughly. Abigail snorted a half laugh as Juniper gasped. 

She wasn't sure when, but Abigail quickly shed her clothes, crawling beside Juniper in the bed. Abigail laid out beside her, playing idly with her nipples. Pinching occasionally hard enough to get a cry out of her, made Abigail laugh.

"Ever been with a woman before?" Abigail asked. John crouched low between her legs, holding her slit open with his thumbs. 

"Yes," Juniper moaned as John ran a thumb across her clit. Her hips bucked only for John to cock his arm back and let his gloved hand land loud and sharp against the backside of her thigh.

"That's your warning, keep still." He growled. She felt herself grow wetter and John chuckled. "Oh, you like that, huh?" Juniper nodded, gasping for air. "I'll have to find a different punishment for you then." Abigail leaned in, her soft lips pressing to Junipers in an encouraging, seeking way. Juniper nipped at her lower lip and Abigail opened her mouth. They explored each other, one of Abigail's hands leaving her breast to twine in her hair. Juniper's hands found Abigail's body of their own accord. Her skin was so soft underneath her fingers, she couldn't get enough of it. 

A thick finger pushed inside her and Juniper moaned, feeling John curl his finger just right. Her hips bucked again and John pulled out, slapping a hand down on her sensitive cunt. She gave a cry and sat up, gasping for air as she looked at him smirking from between her legs.

"You okay?" He asked after a second. Juniper took a minute before nodding slowly, her breath still heavy and slow. "Abigail, maybe she needs to be occupied." His mouth quirked up as he spoke and Abigail gave a small hum in agreement. Juniper laid back, Abigail's insistent hands pushing at her shoulders before the other woman moved to straddle her face. 

"You know what to do?" Abigail asked, bent over to watch Juniper's face.

"Been a while, but I seem to remember the basics." Juniper huffed, reaching up to hold onto Abigail's thighs as her tongue searched of the dampness above her. Before she could try to think of anything else, John returned his hand inside her. A warm, wet tongue slid under her hood and found her clit. An iron hand clamped down on her hip, keeping her still as she moaned into Abigail's folds. Forcing herself to focus on the task at hand, she slipped her tongue up, mimicking John's movements. 

"Oh, you remember plenty." Abigail murmured, her hips rocking gently against Juniper's face. Another finger squeezed into Juniper, stretching her open and curling up into a spot that made her see white for a second. John's tongue swirled against her and Juniper struggled to focus. Abigail leaned forward, moaning loudly, her hands resting against Juniper's bare chest. 

She moaned above her, her arousal spilling down Juniper's face as her hips ground against her mouth. Abigail's breath quickly sped up, her moans hitting higher pitches as she chased her climax into Juniper's mouth. A warmth gushed against Juniper's face and she felt it drip down her chin as Abigail pulled her sensitive slit away from Juniper's probing tongue. 

Need in her core grew, a wave swelling and threatening to crash. Juniper pulled back from Abigail, pressing her head back into the mattress with a loud moan.

"Oh please, fuck me." She begged. John pulled back from her, his hand still inside her and pumping slowly. It wasn't enough, she needed more. His laugh was clear and he continued to slowly fuck her with his fingers as she squirmed underneath him and Abigail. 

"You hear that, Abi? Please. She gets polite when she's desperate." He rammed his fingers as far in as they could go and held them there. "You gonna beg some more." Juniper groaned, her fingers digging into Abigail's thighs. 

"John, you're torturing the poor girl." For a moment, Juniper thought Abigail would help her. "Keep it up." A wicked laugh came from the woman above her. 

"Please, please just fuck me. I need you in me." Juniper whined, trying to buck her hips on to his fingers for any kind of relief.

"Can you come on my cock?" He asked, slowly pulling his fingers out before ramming them back in. Juniper almost sobbed. 

"Yes, please." Her words shook and she finally felt the head of his cock press against her soaked slit. The high pitched cry could surely be heard a mile away but she couldn't care anymore. Abigail's clever fingers slipped against her curly hair and found her sensitive clit. John slammed his hips into her, hard before grabbing up Juniper's legs and holding them over his shoulder. 

He rammed into her again and again as Abigail wrought sobs out of her. Pressure rose inside her, warm and tingling in her core until she came, loud, underneath her two lovers. John somehow found a faster pace to fuck her, the bed slamming against the wall with each thrust, and rode her through her climax. He didn't let up even as she came down, pliant and out of breath.

John pulled free of Juniper and Abigail reached down to spread her tender lips open. John stroked himself a few times before his stomach tensed tight and he started to come over Juniper's opened slit. She could feel the warm ropes against her mounds and across her folds, the feeling drawing more wetness out of her. Juniper tried vainly to keep her attention on Abigail's cunt but the woman pulled away and pushed John aside to crouched between her legs. John moved to Juniper's head, his hands holding her arms against the bed as he smiled devilishly at her.

Overly sensitive, Juniper gave a meek cry and struggled weakly against John's hands as Abigail dug her tongue into her abused slit. Her slender fingers held Juniper's legs open as she cleaned the messy seed from around her swollen folds. Moving above her, Abigail straddled her chest, grabbing her jaw with one hand and forcing her to open up. Leaning over, she opened her mouth and spit John's spend onto Juniper's waiting tongue. 

"Swallow." Abigail commanded. Almost mechanically, Juniper closed her mouth and swallowed the salty taste. Abigail smiled at her, stroking her thumb against her cheek. "Good girl." For a long moment Abigail held her eyes, a tender smile across her face.

"You enjoy yourself?" She asked. Juniper felt dazed still, but managed a slow nod.

"Yeah," She swallowed hard, her face still wet with Abigail. "it was nice." Her breath still labored. John let go of her and crossed the room to the wash basin. 

"I think she's about fucked out, Abigail." He said as he wet a rag and brought it back to wipe Juniper's face. 

"Well, we'll just have to do this again." Abigail smiled, letting go of Juniper and laying down beside her. John tossed the rag back at the wash basin, his half hearted attempt not even making it all the way across the room, before climbing into the bed. Curled up on the opposite side, Juniper rested her head on his shoulder. Still dazed, but very sated, she gave a tired sigh as John adjusted underneath her into a comfortable position. 

Sometime later Abigail was asleep, flush against Juniper's back. Her hand was possessively grasped around one of her breasts, even in sleep. Juniper's head was nestled under John's chin as her hand drew lazy, half asleep circles on his bare chest. His hand rested lightly on her bare hip. The hair on his chest felt soft under her fingers. 

"Can I ask you a question?" John whispered, his chin brushing the top of her head as he spoke.

"Is a question about the future? Because no. That makes my head hurt." She didn't crack an eye open. 

"No, not the future but..." His hand gripped her hip tighter and Juniper made a guess.

"Of course he's yours." The hand on her hip loosened a bit. "And I feel like I should remind you, your father wasn't sure you were actually his either." 

"Am I awful? For caring about it?" He asked, turning his head to look out the window. Juniper raised her head to watch his face.

"You're young. People care about stupid things when they're young. All you can do is try and be better than you were yesterday." She kept her fingers still swirling idly over his chest. 

"Seeing the future makes your head hurt?" John asked, distracted. Juniper nodded her head against his skin.

"Sometimes, if I'm changing it, it makes my nose bleed too." John's hand tightened at her hip again and he craned his neck to look down at her.

"Why the hell would you do it then?" From his tone, she knew he wouldn't do the same and she couldn't really blame him. 

"Because I want you to have a happy ending." She met his eyes, his brows knit together. It felt like an obvious answer to her and John seemed to accept it. He fell silent and Juniper laid her head back down. Underneath her, his shoulder shifted and he began running his hand through her hair. Her eyes fell closed easily and she drifted off to sleep hearing his even breathing under her ear. 

The next day, when they rode back to camp. Juniper sought out Mary Beth, telling her of the job Hosea had suggested. Mary Beth had been more than happy to help dress her up. Tilly and Karen had even gotten in on it, Karen in particularly lacing her corset just a bit tighter than she really liked. She supposed it was necessary if she was going to fit into one of the slim girl's dresses. Even with the help of the bindings, she was still about to burst out of the top of it. Mary Beth was certainly not as well developed as Juniper, but Karen didn't own anything that worked with what Juniper was going for. The girls were having an absolute fit over dressing Juniper up, loud enough that Miss Grimshaw came over to see what the fuss was about.

"What are you laze abouts doing now?" She asked, shoving Mary Beth to the side. When she caught sight of Juniper, she paused. Her eyes raked up and down Juniper a few times. "Well, my, my. Miss Juniper. You look practically human."

"Thank you, Miss Grimshaw. Right back at you." She rolled her eyes at the back handed compliment. The older woman reached out to fuss with her hair a bit, slapping away Tilly's hand to pin it into place. Her hands were far less gentle than the girls had been.

"I'd say you're downright presentable now. If you can keep your mouth in check, you'll pass for a very proper lady." Grimshaw stepped back to appraise her. 

"Thank you, ladies. I'm sure Hosea will be impressed." She tried to slip away as the girls started laughing riotously. Even Miss Grimshaw was joining in.Taking a deep breath, she stepped around John's tent. Arthur nearly bounced off her chest. If he had, she was sure a button would have flown loose. 

"June," He tipped his hat as a greeting, giving her a good once over. 

"I'm helping Hosea with a job." She explained, trying to slip around him before he could make a joke. 

"Of course you are." He smiled, the lines beside his eyes crinkling. "You look nice." His voice called after he as she rolled her eyes, walking off. 

"Hosea!" Juniper smiled at him, calling his attention. He looked over from his breakfast and spit coffee across the grass. Wiping off his face, he swallowed what was left in his mouth. She laughed hard at his reaction.

"Juniper!" A look of glee crossed his face as he stood up to appraise her. She spun around, swaying her skirts out a little. "I'll admit I didn't expect you to clean up so well."

"I told you not to worry about it." She was feeling pretty good about it, even if Mary-Beth's dress was a tad more constricting than she liked. It was all for a con. 

"And you were right, my dear! I will trust your judgment from now on." He motioned for her to follow him and Juniper scampered quickly behind. 

"So, what are we going to do? Am I going to be a damsel in distress? We robbing someone and I need to be a distraction?" She swung up onto Bulletface, Hosea climbing up onto Silver Dollar.

"You're bait." He said plainly before trotting off. Juniper took a second to just be confused before trailing after him. 

"Excuse me, what? Bait? Bait for what? Hosea, I can't wear my guns if I'm looking like bait. Hosea? Hosea!" She yelled at him as he spurred his horse on and Bulletface had to bolt to keep up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Am I writing sex scenes instead of progressing the story? Yes.  
> Do I feel guilty about it? Also Yes.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, remember that time I updated twice in one day? Wild, man.

They stopped a bit outside of Strawberry. Hosea dismounted and began to work to clean himself off from the ride. His clothes were nicer, Juniper noticed, than he usually wore. When she dismounted, he fussed over her clothing a bit.

"Miss Grimshaw does know her stuff." Juniper remarked as she checked her hair for any loose strands, finding it still neatly in place. "Now, will you tell me why I'm _bait_ "

"Yes, yes of course, dear girl." He grinned, brushing a bit of dirt off her shoulder. "You are the lovely and beguiling daughter of a rich investor," Hosea motioned towards himself. "We are here to investigate this town of Strawberry and perhaps invest in it. The mayor is a well known, _upstanding citizen_ who we are going to catch in a compromising position...with you. And extort him for money in exchange for our silence."

"So it's a badger game." Juniper said. "Wouldn't a fiddle game be easier?" Hosea froze in place, surprised by her words. 

“Well, what would suggest?” Hoses leaned back against a thick redwood, his arms crossed as he listened. Juniper took a long moment, catching her hand shaking on its own again and stopping the movement. 

“A blend of the two, maybe? How about this, I’m the fiddle.” She glanced over at him, Hosea’s face twisting up in displeasure. “No, listen. It’s not stupid.”

“I didn’t say it was stupid.” He soften his expression. “I just think it could be dangerous.”

“Okay, look. We go in there, claiming to be a rich showman, I’m your beloved daughter. A singer. We get the mayor to pay for a private performance. I seduce him, get him passed out and we rob him blind.” Juniper likes the idea, a pleased grin on her face. Hosea was silent as he thought it over.

“I still think it could be dangerous.” He argued.

“No,” Juniper scoffed. “You say he’s obsessed with his reputation, right? I play the innocent, think he’ll want to go around talking about how a _woman_ robbed him, after seducing him into a compromising position? He wouldn’t say a word, promise.” As she explained, Hosea started nodding slowly.

“That’s actually not the worst idea. You’re certainly better at this than Arthur or John. But,” He looked up, eyeing Juniper hard. “Could you pull off the singing?” 

“Maybe.” She thought hard about it, trying to think of something to sing that she knew well enough. “Probably. I’ll need to find a musician to accompany, at least once.”

“And we’ll have to make ourselves known, ingratiate ourselves to the mayor. A few days then.” Hosea was getting into it, planning things out in his head “Yes, I think I like this idea.” He reached out to hold Bulletface’s reins. “Let’s head into town then, dear daughter.” His mouth slipped into a smirk that made Juniper laugh. She climbed up into the saddle and took the reins, waiting for Hosea to mount up.

“Okay, Hosea I have a question.” She asked as they walked into Strawberry. He looked over his shoulder to look at her. “Did you make Arthur dress up in a dress once? Tell the truth.” The cackle he let out told her all she needed to know.

“Only once!” A finger raised upward for emphasis “He hadn’t quite finished puberty when we first took him in. If you can imagine, he was once a gangly little thing.” 

“I can’t imagine!” Jumpier gave a snicker.

“He made a convincing maiden! If he kept his face covered and didn’t talk.” Hosea argued. A playful sigh made his shoulders sag. “He never was fond of the dress up.” 

“I can’t imagine.” She shook her head. “I knew it.” 

“Yes, yes you’re very clever. Think you can use that cleverness to find a musician for yourself?” His eyes scanned the town as they rode through, pulling up at the hotel on the far end. The weedy notes of a harmonica drifted through the hustling den.

“Yeah, I think I’ll get lucky. Oh, names?” She dismounted, tying the reins to the hitching post.

“Ah yes, you shall be Eglentine, my beloved daughter. Who has been a magnificent singer since she was a small child.” 

“ _Eglentine?_ ” She couldn’t quite believe that was his answer. Shaking her head and biting back a laugh she took a breath. “Fine, then you shall be Reginald Throckmorton, my doting father and manager.” A gleam in Hosea’s eye was the only response she got before he held out his arm to her. Juniper took it and together they walked into the hotel.

 

“Oh father,” Juniper called out to Hosea, maintaining her speech style she’d been putting on. He had rented a room, loudly exclaiming about his singer daughter. Once they had settled, noting a few people whispering amongst themselves, he'd retired to the room while Juniper went out to find someone to play for her. 

Closing the door, she breathed a sigh of relief. It was...taxing trying to pretend to be an innocent maid. Keeping her mouth shut and thoughts behind a filter had never been a skill of hers. Hosea looked over from the desk in the rented room, holding up a paper he had been reading. 

"We've already been invited for dinner at the Mayor's. This is working better than I expected." He seemed pleased. Juniper shrugged, glancing out the curtains to the sleepy town below.

"It's a tiny town, can't imagine anything much happens here. I don't think I have to even be that good of a singer to be impressive." The newsboy was yelling out from the street corner nearby. She turned back to look at him. "Alright, I give a performance to pique interest, then at the dinner you steer the conversation towards a 'private performance' for the mayor."

"And once he has you alone, you knock him out?" Hosea said. Juniper nodded.

"To make it more embarrassing, I'll truss him up like a turkey." She smirked. 

"How are you going to knock him out?" He stood up from the desk. Juniper reached into her pocket and pulled out a small brown bottle. 

"Old timey pain killer, guaranteed to knock a bitch out." She held it up to the light from the window and read off the label. "Opium and alcohol. If he's still standing after I slip him this mickey, then we deserve to go to jail." Hosea laughed a bit. 

"You can be such a strange bird, sometimes Juniper." He smiled at her. "But you're clever and I can't fault you for it." 

 

The harmonica player she’d spoken too said he could play guitar. When she’d sat down with him to show him what to play, he’d turned out to be fantastic at it. A small part of her cursed, everyone was better at guitar than her. It worked in her favor though, he picked up the simple song easily enough. After slipping him a few bills, she went to find Hosea. 

He was perched just across the bridge, having run off a very boring preacher. A small crowd was gathering to listen to his claims. When he caught sight of her, Hosea held out a hand and called everyone’s attention to her.

“Here she is! My lovely daughter, Eglentine, The Nightingale of California!” Juniper took his offered hand and stepped up on the rock he stood on. “Did you find some accompaniment?” He whispered into her ear. Juniper gave a swift nod. Glancing over, she saw the man she’d hired to walking along the bridge with a guitar in his arms. 

“Just now.” She motioned with her head and Hosea took over. 

“Ah! My good man! Thank you so much for joining us!” He stepped down from the stone to guide the guitarist beside Juniper. “Ah, dearest, which song are you singing?” He whispered.

“Renegade.” She told him. Hosea paused a second to cut a glance at her before he turned and barked the title out loudly for the crowd. With a motion of her hand, the guitar player started up. It wasn’t quite how she was used to the song being played, but he was doing a fine job. 

_Oh Mama, I'm in fear for my life from the long arm of the law._ The guitarist followed her instructions well and simple kept a beat by rapping on his guitar for the first verse. 

_Law Man has put an end to my running and I don't have very long_ She hadn't expected it to be very popular but it was the only song that came to mind that she could remember easy chords for on short notice. Even so, the crowd was dead silent as her voice carried above the water rushing in the stream behind her. 

_Oh Mama, I can hear you crying, you're so scared and all alone  
Hangman is coming down from the gallows and I don't have very long_

When she had been describing the song to the guitarist, she had told him to 'let it rip' after the first verse and the man surprised her by coming up with a decent tune and taking a good minute to put some creativity into it.

 _The jig is up, the news is out, they finally found me._  
The renegade who had it made, retrieved for a bounty.  
Never more to go astray, this'll be the end today  
of the wanted man... 

The guitarist played a small solo, getting into it. The crowd cheered and whooped as the tempo sped up. Hosea's face was less than happy at her choice of subject matter but he couldn't argue with the crowd. As she finished the song, raucous applause drowned out the rushing water and Juniper realized the crowd had grown double in size since she started singing. Hosea quietly thanked the guitarist and helped Juniper down from the rock before thanking the crowd. A hat materialized in his hand and money was happily thrown in. 

“Very well done, my dear.” He let his hand rest against the small of her back as they walked back to the hotel. "Though the subject matter was a bit...personal."

"You loved it." Juniper joked as they stepped into their hotel room. Hosea ducked his head in agreement. 

"It was lively. You have a lovely singing voice." Juniper pulled her gun belt onto the bed and held up her Schofield. 

"Yeah, yeah. Just show me the trick." Hosea laughed as she brushed off the compliment. 

 

The dinner at the mayor's house was earlier than Juniper expected, she wasn't quite done practicing with her gun when Hosea said they had to go. Groaning, she returned the gun to its holster and looked longingly at it for a minute. 

"I'm not going to be able to defend myself very well if it all goes tits up." She was really musing to herself, muttering under her breath, but Hosea caught it and handed her a small knife in a sheath. 

"I won't be far away, and really? I think we both know you can handle yourself, Juniper." He grinned, then looked away suddenly when Juniper raised her skirt to tie the knife around her upper thigh. She smirked at his bashfulness and quickly smoother the fabric back down.

"Still." She eyed him for a minute before dropping it and taking his elbow. "Lead on, father dearest. The mayor is waiting." He seemed to recover quickly from his embarrassment and set his back straight before walking out the door. 

The house was simply built like most of the houses in the area around Strawberry, but richly furnished. Juniper forced herself to be meek and pleasantly polite the whole dinner while Hosea did most of the talking. He was good at the bullshit, Juniper had to admit. Lie after lie came rolling off his tongue like he was reciting Shakespeare, weaving a convincing story with enough touches of details to sound real. 

"Oh, so you've played Théâtre Râleur, in Saint Denis?" The mayor asked. Juniper caught an edge of something in his voice but Hosea didn't seem to notice. 

"Oh, yes. Many times! They keep asking her back." He smirked like any proud father but Juniper saw that same edge in the Mayor's eyes. 

"Oh, so you've met Mr. Lazarus, the host?" 

"Yes, lovely man. Runs a good show." Hosea steamed on ahead despite the change in the Mayor's demeanor. Juniper watched her plate and swallowed down another bite of overcooked chicken. 

"Yes, your performance today was amazing, Miss Eglentine." He turned his gaze to Juniper and she found a smile to keep on her face. Looking up to him, she gave a demouire duck of her head. 

"Thank you so much, it's always wonderful to entertain the people so well." His smile broadened as she spoke and Juniper glanced to Hosea, trying to scream at him with her mind. 

"Yes, I think I would love that private performance your father mentioned." Hosea shifted in his seat but Juniper couldn't tell if he was happy he'd gotten what he'd wanted or if he caught the mood shift. The way he ignored it made her second guess herself, she was just being paranoid. 

"Oh how lovely, Eglentine would be honored. Perhaps after we've finished dinner?"

Juniper ate as slowly as she could, trying to pretend like everything was fine. Hosea still wasn't catching her vibes, or he was and was ignoring them. Even with her dragging, the dinner ended far too soon and they retired to the living room of the large house. Hosea excused himself, some made up concern back at the hotel and stepped out. Ever courteous, the mayor poured two glasses of wine for them while they waited for his return. 

"Tell me, Mayor. Isn't Strawberry a dry town?" She asked, standing in place backed away from him.

"Oh yes, it is. But I had this brought in special. Have to have something to impress foreign dignitaries with." He said the last part like it wasn't a joke and Juniper couldn't help the smirk that jumped to her face. 

"You get many foreign dignitaries here?" She regretted the question the moment a dark shade crossed his face. Trying to play it off like a naive question, she sipped lightly at the wine and tried to make her eyes look soft. "Do you have any pictures?" The shade left his face and the Mayor visibly relaxed. 

"Of course! I have one in my office. Give me one second." He set his wine down and hurried up the staircase at the back of the room. Juniper acted fast, keeping her eye on the stairs and an ear out for his heavy footsteps. Pulling out the bottle of medicine, she up ended more than she probably should have but her heart was in her throat. She managed to secret the bottle back in her pocket just as the Mayor stomped back down the stairs. 

"Here! A Duke from England stayed here." He handed Juniper the daguerreotype, picking his wine back up as she looked at it. Blinking back her nervousness, she smiled with amazement. 

"Wow, a real duke? Amazing. Your town will really be _the_ destination soon. I'm so glad we stopped by here."

The mayor sat on the settee, relaxing to the side as he watched her. Her eyes followed the drink in his hand as he raised it to his lips. 

"If you'd be so kind as to put that back on my desk for me upstairs." He pointed upwards and Juniper gave a small nod. Up the stairs was a small room, an office desk to one side. Setting the picture down, she gathered her skirts in one hand to keep from tripping back down the stairs. 

"Will you drink with me?" He asked as she walked back to the table beside the settee. Juniper caught herself and gave a sweet smile, raising the wine up in a toast. 

"Of course, though I have to warn you, I'm not much of a drinker myself. To Strawberry." She tittered a bit before sipping at the wine gingerly. Thick and bitter, Juniper quickly spit the wine back into the goblet without drawing attention to it. She seethed while maintaining a straight face. So he had figured it out, switched the drinks on her. It took more than that to trick Juniper.

The mayor laughed and motioned beside him on the settee. Juniper cautiously sat down, not having to try too hard to seem reluctant. He took another sip of the wine, and reached out to encourage her to do the same. She raised the cup to her lips but didn’t drink.

“Oh, please, I won’t be able to perform for you if drink too much. It’s not good for the throat.” She tapped her neck and set the goblet down on the nearby side table. Trying her best to continue her charade, she fought off the fluttery panic. He had figured them out, but how much had he guessed? Hosea said he would be close but she had no way to signal him that it was going badly. That was poor planning on her part. She could have kicked herself.

“Oh, I’m not too worried about that.” He leaned in, a hand reached out to grab her wrist, pulling it towards him.

“Mayor!” Juniper squeaked, a little startled by how weak her voice sounded. “I apologize if my father gave you the wrong impression, but I am not that kind of girl.” She jerked her hand free of his grasp and stood up, still leaning hard into her role. The Mayor stood and followed her. He was bigger than her, outweighed her too. If it came down to a struggle she wasn’t sure it would go well.

“Oh, I think you are exactly that kind of girl. Your father is a liar, and you aren’t too different, are you?” He reached out, grabbing the fabric at her throat and throwing her onto the settee. The wood groaned and banged as she fell heavily onto it. The buttons on her chest gave up the ghost and popped under the strain, skittering across the wood floor. Her confined chest heaved with it’s new freedom as she sucked in a worried breath. 

Grabbing up the cup of wine she’d managed to avoid drinking, the mayor grabbed her by the throat before straddling her.

“Open your mouth.” He ordered. Juniper struggled underneath him but his knees held her arms pinned and his great weight was too much for her to budge. The soft cushion beneath them gave her no leverage to push him off her. A heavy hand slapped her hard and Juniper tasted copper. “Open your fucking mouth.” He snarled, fingers pressing into the joint of her jaw and forcing her mouth open. 

“Now that is no way to talk to a lady.” The mayor froze as a gun barrel pressed against his head. Juniper gave a sigh of relief as she saw Hosea standing next to the settee, his arm outstretched as he aimed his pistol. The mayor instantly let go of Juniper and she scrambled off, putting distance between her and the man. “How about you drink that wine, since you’re so insistent on it being used.” Nicholas took a moment, still frozen in place, to consider his options before slowly raising the wine to his lips and swallowing down the entire cup. “Good boy.” Hosea sneered. 

He kept his gun trained on the mayor as Juniper moved to stand behind him, scowling but feeling very grateful he had shown up. The mayor sat back, quickly losing consciousness. She let out a heavy sigh of relief when he finally fell limp onto the red cushions. 

“Are you alright?” Hosea holstered his gun and turned to look back at her. She couldn’t quite meet his eye, pushing him away as she turned to the room.

“I’m fine. He caught one of your lies. I tried to signal you! Could you not tell he was on to us?” She deflected, quickly moving to the desk upstairs and rifling through the drawers. “Should have come up with some kind of signal to let you know it was going tits up.” It was more of a reprimand for herself than anything else. A few trinkets were in the drawers, but nothing really substantial. Hosea was silent, watching her leave up the stairs for a few moments before moving to strip the room of valuables. 

The furniture was gaudy, the desk was no different and she stalled at the bottom drawer. It was deeper on the outside than it seemed on the inside. 

“Ah ha!” She said, drawing Hosea’s attention as she pulled the drawer all the way out. Tossing the papers from the drawer, her fingers found a small hole in the back corner. Pulling the false bottom out, Juniper let out a small whistle. Three gold bars and a few bags of jewelry sat at the bottom, waiting for her. 

She shoved a couple bags down the front of her now exposed corset and headed back downstairs to hand the bars to Hosea. He hefted the weight in his hands. 

“This is a good haul, Juniper.” A satisfied grin spread across his face. Juniper smiled back but her eyes slid around him to the snoring body of the mayor draped across the settee. Her eyes narrowed as she marched across the room.

“What do we do with him?” Hosea asked.

“What’s the most embarrassing thing we can do to him?” She replied, already working to strip his clothes off him. 

Hosea didn’t press her to hurry up as she took her time posing the mayor. He kept a watch out and helped her move his bulky frame when she asked but mostly kept silent.

She left him naked on the settee, his hands bound to his ankles so his ass was high in the air. As a final touch, she set a small bottle of oil near him on the coffee table. The rest of the bottle of wine got poured out the window and tossed on the bed to give a convincing scene to the unlucky person who found the mayor. It wasn’t exactly what she wanted to do to the man but it was enough. 

A final idea occurred to her before they left. Hosea paused, hissing for her to come on. She ignored him, pulling a flower out of the vase on the coffee table and sticking it on display between the Mayor's exposed cheeks. Hosea almost let out a loud guffaw at her decorating choice but still grabbed her arm and pulled her out. They slipped out quietly through the back door, whistling for their horses and riding off under the cover of night. Hosea didn’t say anything until they were far away from Strawberry. 

“That was too damn close.” He finally cursed softly. 

“You’re telling me.” Juniper agreed. They pulled their horses up in a clearing a bit away from the road. After how much cold medicine the mayor had taken, he probably wouldn't be waking up anytime soon, but they still wanted to be careful. 

It was quick to get camp set up. Hosea pulled the tent up fast but Juniper had the fire going long before he was finished. He voiced his surprise, handing her a piece of meat to heat over the fire. 

"I used to go camping a lot with my Dad, when I was younger." She shrugged out an explanation as she split the meat with him. 

"Juniper, I'm sorry about not stepping in sooner." Hosea started to stammer a bit, clearly feeling bad about what happened. Juniper eyed Hosea for a minute but shrugged her shoulders.

"Don't worry about it, but next time, I think we need a signal." Stretching out beside the fire, Juniper took a deep breath. 

"Next time? Juniper, I don't think-" He was embarrassed, she could see it on his face. 

"Nonsense! Just need a contingency plan ready, is all." When she interrupted him, he pulled a scowl that made her want to laugh. "Next time, if I say..." She thought for a minute. " Blackwater. That means everything's gone wrong." The face she got from that made her laugh out loud this time, cackling as Hosea looked back to the fire. 

"Hosea, really. It was too lucrative for us to not do this again. It'll make a great story." She offered and knew she had him hooked when he smirked back over at her. Nudging him with the toe of her boot, he finally relented. 

"Yes! Just as poor, sweet Juniper was at his mercy I charged in, guns blazing!" He fell right into turning the story into something grand. 

"Sweet?!" Juniper yelled, laughing through her own mock anger. 

"Well, flustered at least." He offered.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Secret Time: I really wish I could have a cross over story with Juniper and all my favorite RDR2 Modern OCs on AO3. I think it'd be funny.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Woo Hoo! 69 Kudos!

When they returned to camp Hosea was already walking off to find Dutch and regail him with a new story. He'd practiced the story on the ride home, sending Juniper into a fit of laughter that had tears streaming down her eyes. A pleased look settled on his face as she wiped at the tears, still chuckling. 

As she was tying Bulletface to a hitching post, Arthur stepped up behind her and planted a quick kiss on her cheek. 

"Sorry to miss you, I'm just heading out for a bit. I'll be back tonight." A hand lingered at her waist for a second, his eyes trailing down the undone buttons on her chest before he pulled away, whistling for Bourbon. Juniper wondered at the newfound contact from him, he wasn't a PDA kind of guy really. "Micha's back in camp." He muttered before he heaved himself into the saddle. Ah, she thought, that was it. "Try to not draw his attention."

"I'll do my best." She said, not really meaning it. Arthur gave her a long stare before shaking his head and nudging his horse into a trot. Her eyes scanned the camp but couldn't find Micha anywhere nearby. Her mouth quirked into a scowl as she thought about that rat face. 

"You alright, Miss Juniper?" Kieran was walking by, carrying a saddle to clean. Shaking herself out of her scowl she nodded. 

"Yeah, I'm fine. How are you doing?" Her hands worked to busy themselves on Bulletface's saddle, anything to keep her hand from shaking. The horse gave a relaxed sigh as she pulled the heavy saddle off its back, setting it aside. Kieran stopped from wherever he had been going, balancing the saddle over the hitching post next to Juniper. 

"Same as ever, pretty sure someone here will kill me." It was an attempt at a joke, thin as it was and Juniper smiled in return.

"Will it make you feel better if I promise no one here kills you?" Kieran handed a curry comb over as she spoke and Juniper began getting the dirt and sweat out of Bulletface's scarred coat. 

"Maybe." He said, his voice still a bit scared. "Probably." Kieran reached out to pet Bulletface's nose, the horse moving to snuff at his pockets. Juniper watched out of the corner of her eye as he slipped the horse a sweet. 

"Why'd you pick this poor thing?" His hands ghosted over the scars on Bulletface's face. Juniper sighed, her own hand trailing over a heavily worn patch of skin on the horses flank. 

"Because she's still a good horse, even if she's a little ugly. It's not her fault she's all messed up." The horse leaned into Juniper, pressing its shoulder against its rider. 

"She's really filled out since you took her in, real quick like." He reached up to scratch behind her ears. 

"Yeah, sometimes all a creature needs is a little kindness." The words almost died in her throat as she realized she wasn't talking about just Bulletface. Sighing to herself, she reached into her saddle bags. "I'll give you a dollar if you'll take care of her for me, I gotta get this damn dress off." Kieran blushed up to his ears as she held the bill out to him.

"Oh, you d-d-don't gotta pay me." The stutter cracked through his voice and Juniper sighed, shoving the bill into his hand anyways. 

"You should have something for all you do around here. You're worth paying, Kieran." She narrowed her eyes but he shrank under her gaze. Letting it go, she turned to head into camp. The dress was nice and all but it was tight and not her style and she didn't care for it very much after spending a few days in it. 

From inside Dutch's tent she could hear Hosea still going on about their trip. Dutch's laughter floated out and she smiled to herself a bit. It wouldn't hurt to listen a bit more. Stepping under the awning to one side of his tent, Juniper looked through some of the books Dutch had left out. Maybe she should actually read one of them. 

“Don’t believe we’ve met yet.” That voice made a scowl slam onto her face. 

Micha stood behind Juniper. He must have known Arthur was out of camp, at least for a few hours. The sneer in his voice was one thing, Juniper expected that much at least, but the lecherousness dripping through the cracks caught her by surprise. Her shoulders went tight as he stepped close enough to feel his breath on the back of her neck.

“Dutch says you’re doing a good job earning your keep.” It was almost a compliment, but the hand that slid around her waist made his intentions clear. She closes the book in her hands, gripping the sides tight enough to turn her knuckles white. Out of the corner of her eye she could see someone walking fast across the camp. From where they were walking from she suspected it was John. Well, she'd just have to say hello before he came over to stop her. 

Shifting her feet and turning at the waist, she brought the hardback book into the side of Micha's face. Unexpected, he stumbled to the side, a small cry leaving him. Not waiting for a reaction, she turned the book on its side and rammed the binding as hard as she could into his throat. He gave a gagged cry, clutching his throat. Turning to face him fully, she raised a leg and kicked him squarely in the chest, sending him sprawling backwards into the grass. 

"Juniper!" It was John, storming over. He stopped short when Micha fell backwards, speechless. 

"Where are my knives?!" She screeched, turning to go rifle through her things next to her sleeping pad. 

"Juniper, no." John grabbed for her arm only for Juniper to slip free of his grasp. Her heart was pounding in her throat and she was on autopilot, anger taking over. 

"Juniper, yes." She yelled back at him as she kicked her satchel over, grabbing up one of the knives that spilled out. When she turned, knife at the ready, Dutch was stepping between her and Micha, his hands raised up to stop her. 

"Juniper, you can't kill Micah." He said, calm and low to try and pull the mood back down. 

"He touched me." She pointed at Micah, still on the ground and clutching his throat. Dutch nodded, slowly walking towards her, his hand held between him and the knife she was flinging around. 

"And he shouldn't have done that. Micha, you won't ever touch dear Juniper again, will you?" Dutch paused for a moment, looking over his shoulder. Micha gave a wheezing attempt to speak but ended up weakly nodding. "I understand your anger, but child, I can't have you killing a gang member in camp." Juniper pointed her knife at Dutch as he spoke. He jerked back a bit at suddenly having a knife blade in his face.

"I am not a child. If I can't kill him in camp then drag. Him. Out. Of. Camp." She enunciated her words sharply as she spoke, motioning towards the trees with a swing of her knife. 

"Juniper, take a breath." Hosea was walking over, followed closely by Charles. Her eyes cut to him as she breathed in heavy through her nose. "Dear girl, try and calm down." She straightened up as she glared at Hosea, her shoulders still tense. Micah was climbing to his feet now, still holding his throat. "Micah won't talk to you again. Right, Micah?" He looked over for an answer and Micah gave a weak nod. Juniper lowered her knife and the two men visibly relaxed a bit. Dutch lowered his arms and rested his hands on his hips, glancing back at Micah. 

"Was a pretty good hit, though." He smirked back at her, his mustache quirking up on one side. 

"I got him by surprise." Juniper admitted, her shoulders relaxing a bit. 

"Not an easy thing to do." Hosea added, stepping closer. He held his hand out for the knife but Juniper shook her head, sliding it into a sheath on her belt. 

"If he gets near me again, you won't stop me." She leveled her eyes at Dutch who gave a solemn nod of his head as if sealing a deal.

"Charles, how about you take dear Juniper into town for a bit? Let her cool off, give Micha a chance to make himself scarce." Dutch looked over to the man standing behind Hosea. Juniper hadn't really registered that he was there at first but her eyes jumped to his in an instant. He stared at her impassively. 

"Of course, Dutch." Was all he said, walking towards the horses. Juniper scowled, she hadn't even gotten to change clothes yet. Charles gave a glance over his shoulder to her, his eyes softening as he looked at her and Juniper tried to let her anger go with a heavy sigh and follow after him. 

Kieran was brushing out Bulletface, the horse enjoying it enough her head had sunk low and her lips were wiggling. She stood, watching her horse sigh in happiness under Kieran's hands and knew she wasn't about to ride the poor thing into Valentine.

"Come on, you can ride with me." Charles said, closer behind her than she thought he was. It was like he could read her thoughts, a welcome reprieve from feeling like she had to shout them at everyone else. 

He was already up mounted, holding a hand out to her which Juniper took. Even if she didn't really need it. Charles was solid in front of her, shifting a little as she wrapped her arms around his broad torso, her hands barely able to touch around his barrel chest. Out, away from camp, Juniper relaxed against him. Letting her head rest against his warm back, she sighed, a little disappointed in herself. 

"I shouldn't have done that." She muttered, really just to herself.

"You want to go back and apologize to him?" Charles asked, his voice rumbling in her ear before she snapped up straight.

"Fuck no!" The retort left her, sharp and quick, making Charles laugh hard.

"Then I don't think you really regret it." Taima snorted under them, going at a leisurely jog. 

"I didn't mean..." What did she mean exactly? Juniper had to take a minute to think it over. "I don't regret hurting Micha, I will _never_ regret hurting Micha. I just regret losing my temper...in front of people." Certain people, she thought to herself with eyes trained on the back of Charles' head. He nodded slowly as she talked. 

"It can be hard to control anger when it sparks inside of you, but...maybe sometimes it's okay to be angry." His words were measured and Juniper stopped feeling sorry for herself long enough to listen. Valentine loomed in the distance as they crossed the train tracks. "Micha is dangerous, letting him know exactly what will happen if he gets on your bad side is probably a good idea." 

" _If_ he gets on my bad side?" Juniper snorted, laying her head back against Charles. "Fucker was born on my bad side." 

"I can tell." Charles said. 

They stopped near the saloon and Juniper slipped off Taima's flank before Charles could dismount. Inside of the saloon smelled like old liquor and body odor. The piano player was playing a song Juniper vaguely recognized. A gruff man, nearly blind drunk, stumbled against her and she slipped a hand into his pocket. She was rewarded with a small bill fold. Keeping her hand closed around it, she waited for him to stumble out of the bar before slipping the folded bills down the center of her corset. Charles let a hand trail along the small of her back and gave her a small smile. He'd caught her lift. 

At the bar, Juniper leaned forward, Charles standing with his back to the bar. Using some of the money she'd stolen, she bought both of them a round of beers. Together they stood in silence.

“Where’s my money?!” The man she’d stolen the bill fold from a few minutes ago busted into the saloon. The doors slammed into the walls and the piano cut out. Juniper froze, trying not to draw attention to herself. Charles was behind her, a hand pressed hard to her hip. They started trying to slip away but the man's eyes went right to Juniper. 

"Could I get another beer?" She asked the bartender, who cautiously slid her another bottle in exchange for a coin.

“You! Whore! You stole my money!” The man pointed at Juniper. He started to storm over. Charles stood up straight, putting himself between Juniper and her accuser. Her hand tightened around the beer bottle, though she tried to make herself seem relaxed. 

“Don't speak to my lady friend like that.” Charles' voice was low and dangerous. 

“That’s no lady! That’s a thieving whore!” He jabbed his finger at her. Charles frowned, his brow lowering in anger. Juniper gave a laugh, holding up the beer. Both men looked at her at the sound. 

“One second.” She said. Holding the beer on the edge of the bar, she slammed her palm down on the cap and the top popped off. The bartender gave a dismayed grumble as beer foamed up and spilled out of the bottle to the floor. Juniper raised it to her lips and chugged the bottle. The two men held silent, watching her. When she had drained the bottle, she smashed the end on the bar and held it up the broken glass. 

“Alright, let’s do this.” She grinned. Charles looked startled by her reaction. Juniper only shrugged with a smile. Her accuser stormed closer, Juniper swinging the bottle to keep his distance. Charles raised a hand to stop the man from getting near her. 

Behind them all, the saloon doors swung open and a new customer walked in. He froze when they saw the scene inside. It was Arthur, probably back from what he had been doing and trying to have a nice drink before he headed back to camp. Instead he walked in on Juniper holding up a broken bottle at a large men while Charles tried to stop the fight. The two men turned to look as Arthur walked in and Juniper took the chance to throw the broken bottle at the man who’d been ready to beat her. Grabbing Charles by the hand, Juniper dragged him along out the back door of the saloon. Outside, they were laughing hard. Charles whistled, looking around for Taima. 

“That wasn’t what I was expecting.” Juniper said. Charles shook his head.

“Me neither. If he hadn’t noticed his money was missing so soon you wouldn’t have gotten caught.” Charles smiled, looking off. The sun was going down and the warm light of the sunset caught his face just right. Juniper glanced up at him, admiring the jut of his jawline. Charles caught her eye and Juniper looked away quickly.

“We should be heading back. It’s getting late.” Charles whistled again, still waiting on Taima. Juniper reached out, her hand trailing along Charles arm. 

“No real need to rush.” She murmured. Charles raised an eyebrow, looking back.  
Her hand slipped to Charles collar, grabbing tight. A heavy thumb slipped inside his collar, stroking over his collar bone. Juniper couldn’t handle it any longer. Her hands slipped to the curve of Charles jaw and she pressed a hard, seeking kiss to his lips. Pushing him back until the two collided with the back wall of the saloon. 

Charles lips were soft and he smelled of flowers and coffee and firesmoke. Juniper melted against him, the skin of his neck absolutely enthralling to the touch. Her hands were already pulling Charles shirt loose from his belt as she opened her mouth and their tongues met. Underneath his shirt, Juniper’s hands slid against the hard muscles of his chest. Charles fingers tangled in Juniper’s hair as their lips parted. Juniper worked her way down Charles neck, fighting her desire to leave livid red marks along the side. The back door of the saloon suddenly opened and the two froze as a man stepped outside, looking around. 

“Okay... not entirely surprising.” Arthur chuckled a little. Juniper scowled over her shoulder at him while Charles gave a relieved sigh. “You two might want to get off the streets at least. Your mark is still kind of angry. It won’t take long for them to figure out where you went.” Juniper gave a groan and rested her head against Charles chest.

“He’s right.” She said into the man's shirt, slightly defeated. Charles ran his hand through Juniper’s hair as she glanced at Arthur. 

“Arthur, would you escort us to the hotel?” She asked, a playful tone in her voice. Charles looked at her, suspicious. Arthur went red around the ears, looking up at the quickly dimming sky. 

“It’s just across the street.” He stammered.

“We wouldn’t want anything bad to happen, would we?” Juniper smiled at Arthur, a glint in her eye. Charles looked between the two, grinning as he got the idea. Arthur’s eyes darted back and forth between them, feeling like he had lost a fight he hadn’t even been aware he’d been having. 

“Yeah, Arthur, why don’t you walk us to the hotel. It’s too late to ride back to camp now.” Charles added. Juniper pulled away from him to slip an arm around Arthur. Charles pushed away from the side of the building and the two began walking him around the saloon, towards the hotel. In the hotel, Charles paid while Juniper pulled Arthur up the stairs. On the landing on the second floor Juniper stopped, her hand moving to take Arthur's hand. 

“Are you sure about this? I know I can be kind of pushy.” She watched his face for any kind of reluctance. Juniper smiled a little too toothy and Arthur blushed again, dipping his head down to hide beneath the brim of his hat. “Arthur, you're very sweet but it's important. Are you okay with this?” She asked again. He looked down the stairs as Charles started climbing them.

“Yeah, I am.” A grin spread across his face as he watched the other man near them. Juniper smiled at him, the grin looked good on him. Charles paused at the top of the stairs, looking at the two holding hands. 

“Someone might think you two were conspiring, up here.” He said playfully, turning to walk down the hallway to the hotel room. 

“Not conspiring,” Juniper muttered, “Just making sure everybody’s on board.” Arthur’s hand strayed to her hip as she followed behind Charles. 

“What are you two doing in town anyways?” Arthur asked as Charles unlocked the room. He looked over his shoulder, obviously expecting Juniper to explain herself. She gave a heavy sigh.

“I attacked Micha.” Quickly slipping into the room, she cringed as Arthur shouted. 

“You what?!” He sounded more mad than anything else. He stomped in behind her, slamming the door closed. “I leave you for a few hours and you’re getting into fights?

“He started it!” Juniper shrugged, trying to defend herself. “He came up being all gross and touching me.” Arthur’s anger faded as she talked. “So I hit him with a book a couple times.” 

“She about crushed his windpipe.” Charles corrected. “Had Micha laid out in seconds.” Arthur’s body sagged, letting go of tension. 

“I knew it’d be trouble. You didn’t get hurt?” She gave a half hearted smile and shook her head. He was thinking, Juniper wasn’t sure about what but he seemed to decide. Wiping at his face, Arthur took a deep sigh. “I mean, with your _scandalous_ new outfit, I’m not surprised he picked you out.” Juniper followed his eyes down to her cleavage and sighed, flopping down on the bed. Charles was lounging across the head of the bed, relaxing onto an elbow. 

“Shit, you wouldn’t believe the job I pulled with Hosea. Fucker ripped my dress, so now I’m sure I’ll need to buy a new one for Mary Beth. Been tight laced into the damn thing for nearly three days, can’t wait to get it off.” Her hands slapped at the buttons uselessly for a moment before finding the buttons and working slowly down. 

“Hold up,” Charles reached out, grabbing her wrist. “Who ripped your dress?” He glanced to Arthur for a second then looked back at her. Juniper sighed again, happy to finally be shedding the dress. 

“The mark, he caught onto us trying to scam him. Tried to drug me with the same wine I was drugging him!” She gave a small laugh, shrugging the top of the dress off and reaching behind her to undo the skirts. “He got a little rough and the stupid dress just bust open, I was sure it was going to go very badly very quickly.” Arching her back to slip out of the many layers, she bit her lip for a second. “But, Hosea showed up just in time and I left the bastard trussed up like a turkey.” A devilish chuckle escaped her as she sat up in bed, working to loosen the ties of the corset. 

“Who was the mark?” Arthur asked, all business in his voice. He lit a cigarette and took a drag. Juniper let out a heavy sigh as the corset loosen enough for her to undo the hooks in the front. Taking a deep breath and expanding her ribs, she stretched better than she had for days. 

“Mayor of Strawberry. Useless fucker, but we made good money of the job at least.” A warm hand slid under her chemise, rubbing against the muscles of her back. Juniper gave a soft sigh and laid back onto the bed, rolling to her stomach. Charles rucked her chemise up to expose her back and began rubbing heavy circles against the skin. “Wearing a corset isn’t so bad but fuck do I not like tight lacing.” She mumbled into the mattress. 

“All that and then you come home to have Micha coming at you, I’m surprised you didn’t kill him.” Arthur joked, kicking of his boots and shedding a few layers of clothing. 

“Dutch wouldn’t let me.” She admitted. Her eyes closed as Charles's hands slid down her back, still rubbing into her muscles. A moan came out of her that sounded a bit too unseemly and his hands slipped lower, tugging her drawers loose. Juniper was quickly growing boneless against the mattress. 

A hand snaked into her hair and tugged her head to the side. She looked up at Arthur's clear blue eyes twinkling at her. Her hands tightened around the sheets and she gave a small gasp as Charles's fingers slipped between her warm folds. 

"Don't be falling asleep on us." He said, fake authority in his voice. She smirked lazily up at him, her hips hitching backwards as Charles pulled her hips up over her knees. A warm tongue slid up her slit, making her squirm in pleasure. 

"I wouldn't dream of it." Her words were interrupted but a sharp gasp and heady moan as Charles laid a hot stripe along her ass. She pressed back against his face, feeling his hands dig into her hips hard enough to bruise. 

"Oh," Arthur joked. "haven't heard you make that sound before. Charles do it again." As she felt the tongue probe her tight hole a moment, Arthur tightened his hold on her hair and pulled her head up. Her neck jerked back, Juniper's eyes fluttered as Charles more forcefully attacked her. "Maybe I should put that mouth to work." His hand released her and Juniper let her face fall to the bed sheets again. Charles slowly started stretching her open, one finger spit slicked sliding into her. 

 

She managed to raise her head enough to watch Arthur undo his pants and spring his half hard cock free. Licking her lips in anticipation, she swallowed the girthy member to the root making Arthur give a shout. His hand grabbed tight to her upper arm, more to support himself than anything. 

"Fuck." He cursed, breathless. Juniper pulled back, raising one hand to tug softly at his balls. Arthur moved to pull one foot underneath him, steadying himself before Juniper swallowed him to the hilt again. She paused to moan as Charles dripped oil on her ass and pushed it through her tight ring with two fingers. Arthur's hips jerked into her face, making her gag a bit. His hand grabbed up her hair, pulling it out of her face as he took a heavy grip and began rutting into her mouth. Juniper braced herself with one hand on his thigh as she welcomed the assault. 

Her attention was too focused on Charles stretching her open enough to slide a third finger inside her to the knuckle. His grip on her hips lightened as she pushed back against his fingers. Arousal spread through her, she could feel herself growing wet between her thighs. Moaning around Arthur's cock, her nails dug into his thigh hard enough to make him hiss.

"Okay," Arthur huffed, pulling out of her mouth. Juniper ran a tongue over her swollen, abused lips and looked up at him with a soft smile. Her pupils were blown wide underneath half lidded eyes. Arthur smiled down at her, running a thumb across her cheekbone and wiping away the tears that had slid out. "was that too rough?" He as, nearly a whisper. 

"No, not even close." Juniper rasped out. 

"What was it you told me?" Charles said as he shoved three fingers into her to the base. "You wanted us to ride you like a...green broke horse?" He smirked as Arthur chuckled.

"You going to buck me off, then?" Arthur asked. Charles slid his fingers out of her, leaving Juniper breathing hard in Arthur's hand. 

"I can certainly fucking try." Trying to catch her breath, she kept her hand tight on his thigh until he let go of her hair. Dropping to the mattress, she only rested a minute before Arthur reached down, pulling her up his chest. 

"Oh, no. I don't like being bucked off." He cooed to her, adjusting their bodies until she looked down at him. "I like it better when I go slow." His hands slid up her sides, pulling off the chemise that was tangled up around her neck and shoulders. Letting his hands slide down to her thighs and slip between her wet, flushed cores. "Ease the horse into it." As he talked softly in her ear, he slipped his slick fingers around his cock and positioned it, waiting, at her dripping entrance. "Make sure it likes what we're doing first." Juniper whined and pressed back at the waiting head, needing him inside her aching cunt. "I'm good at it." Once he was positioned, Arthur let go of his shaft and caught Juniper's head up in his strong hands. Forcing her to look at him, he thrust up into her. Slipping in with ease, he seated himself deep inside her. Juniper's eyes rolled back in her head as she cried out with a sob. Her fingers found support wrapped around his biceps. "When I do it right, the horse comes to me." Pulling her head down, he planted heavy kisses along her jawline as he snapped his hips up a few times. Juniper buried her face in his neck, crying out each time as he found just the right spot inside her with every thrust. 

Letting go of her head, Arthur held her thighs up, fingers digging into the soft underside as he seated himself deeper in her. Juniper rested her head against his shoulder, her arms wrapped under his chest. Feeling Charles take her hips and press against her loosened ring, she let out a deep moan. He slowly slid past what little resistance there was and began gently rocking his hips into her, pushing deeper with each measured thrust. Juniper had to fight to not drool on Arthur's chest.

"I see you've done this before." She managed to groan the words out, Arthur laughing underneath her, one hand running up her back to tangle in her hair. Charles leaned across her back as he fully seated himself inside her. 

"As have you." He whispered in her ear. They both started to move, slow at first but Junipers moans built them up into a tempo she couldn't control. Letting them pound into her, her mind started to flounder and she found herself unable to think straight. When a hand reached across her stomach to find her clit, she screamed. Arthur pressed his mouth against hers, swallowing the sounds she made as his tongue searched inside. Her hands grasped at anything they could reach, one tangling sharply into his hair. 

It was a surprise, her arousal building up inside her suddenly burst. Juniper was left biting down on Arthur's shoulder as she came hard around the two cocks pistoning inside her. Arthur gave a strangled cry as he followed her close behind, pulling out to spill against her thigh. Charles doubled his efforts as Arthur slowed down.

Beneath her, he turned his attention to her lips. Biting her lower lip a second before swiping his tongue across the plush flesh and finding his way inside. They rocked together, Charles' pound setting the whole bed rocking until he gave a deep moan and released himself inside her. He collapsed against her back and Juniper was squished between the two broad chests. A sigh of contentment escaped her at the comforting weight pressing on her. His hand rested against her cheek, the thumb rubbing soft swipes. Charles smiled down at her.

"You like being crushed?" He joked.

"Between you two? Yes." She gasped out. Charles and Arthur eyed each other around her and without speaking, wrapped their arms around each other and squeezed. Juniper, stuck in the middle gave a laughing cry as they crushed her between each other. "Alright!" She gasped after a minute, slapping at Arthur's shoulder. The men let go with loud guffaws as she squirmed out from between them. Rolling to her side, she pressed close against Arthur's chest. Charles crawled behind her. Before she could really think about much else, she found herself passing out. 

The next morning came sooner than Juniper thought it should. She woke up tangled in arms and legs, the sheets just barely clinging to her waist. When she shifted, Charles gave a murmur of protest behind her and his hand tightened where it lay across Juniper’s breast. She wanted to get up but the lure of the bed and the man behind her was too much. Charles' hand relaxed then tightened again, catching her nipple between the pads of his fingers. Juniper gave a soft moan at the stimulation A feather light kiss was pressed to the back of her neck as Charles stirred. His fingers slid light across Juniper’s stiff nipple, drawing out another quiet moan from her. His soft lips moved up Juniper’s neck, a warm tongue slipping out to tease her earlobe. 

“Charles, you’re gonna kill me.” Juniper groaned, shifting as arousal spread out from her core. Her eyes finally fluttered open and she noticed a distinct lack of another body in the bed.

"Where did Arthur go?" She asked, still half asleep. Charles rolled her nipple between his fingers.

"He had a quick job to take care of." His words flushed against her skin, his tongue following their path along her neck. "Said if he got out early, he could probably make it back to camp by tonight."

"So, what you're telling me," Juniper dragged herself to sit up, Charles' hands still teasing her. She bit back a soft moan. "is we've got no plans for the day." Her smirk only lasted until Charles slid a hand between her thighs.

" _I've_ got plans." He told her, making it very clear what those plans were. 

"So you do..." Juniper said before rolling on top of him, straddling him. Through the thin sheet, his growing bulge was pressing against her. "Guess I should join you."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> should I write out the werewolf AU I got kicking around in my head?


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It’s been forever and a day, I apologize. I got distracted. I do that a lot. I don’t abandon my works. Have faith, my friends.

“Paul Revere is a terrible name for a horse.” Charles chuckled as Juniper walked the chocolate roan Dutch Warmblood out of the Valentine barn. “It’s a mare!” She shook her head in disagreement and patted the neck of her new horse. The beast shook her head and flicked an ear back to listen. 

“It’s a fine name for a horse, leave me be” With a smooth motion she turned her horse around and the two riders began trotting out of town. “I’m sure Bulletface will be glad to have the back up.” 

“No doubt,” Charles was still smirking but dropped the complaint. “Never seen a horse take to a rider as quick as Bulletface took to you.” 

“Aw, that’s not true. She’s just a sweet little thing who needed a little kindness.” Charles didn’t look like he quite believed her but didn’t argue with her. 

The sun was just starting to set once they reached camp. John marched across camp the moment he caught sight of her riding in. Long arms were already strapped to his back. 

“Where you two been? We got a train to rob.” He sounded annoyed. Juniper leveled a stare at him until he seemed to realize what he was asking. “Well, Arthur’s already gone to the meeting point, we need to get going.” He shuffled uncomfortably for a minute before mounting up on Old Boy. 

“Yeah, yeah, just let me change clothes real quick. If I have to wear this damn dress any longer I’m going to strangle someone with a petticoat.” Juniper slipped from the saddle and hurried into John’s tent for some privacy. She hurried, leaving the dress and skirts in a heap on the end of his cot before hustling back out, changed into pants and a shirt. 

“Don’t think I’ve ever seen a lady change clothes that quickly.” John joked as they started riding out, a heavy chuckle shaking his shoulders. 

“You are aware of how much damn clothing women have to wear, right?” She asked, a little annoyed. John was nice but he was a bit oblivious most of the time. He nodded his head, looking off as they set out at a slow lope across the quickly darkening grasslands. 

In the distance, Juniper could see the ruins of a house inside a copse of trees. Beside the ruins, an oil wagon was parked. It was hard to see, especially with the lengthening shadows of dusk but the figure of Arthur, sitting against a wheel, was just visible. Sean was curled up nearby. 

“Did you check the basement?” Juniper asked as Arthur woke and climbed to his feet. He took a second to shake the sleep from his brain and chuck a rock at Sean.

“No, I didn’t get to that yet.” He said, stretching a bit. A cry of indignation came out of Sean as he struggled to his feet, still half asleep. Juniper gave a quick nod and jumped onto the ruined foundation, scurrying down the ladder. Halfway down, she paused and looked at the carved letters around the trap door. _Gus Pickrell 1855_ She wondered briefly who he was, but John called out after her and she continued on her way. The loose brick was just where she remembered it, sliding out as masonry dust fell to the floor with it. Behind the stone, her fingers wrapped around a billfold and she smiled, pleased with herself. 

“You find what you looking for?” Arthur yelled down from the trapdoor. 

“Yeah. We’re good!” She re-emerged, showing off the money. 

“How’d you know that was there?” Sean asked, confused. Juniper rolled her eyes in response, refusing to answer as she tucked the bills into her satchel. Arthur was climbing up into the seat of the oil wagon and Juniper hopped up after him, John squeezing beside her so she was pressed between both of their thighs. Charles held onto the side as Arthur snapped the reins, Sean having to move double time to grab onto the other side. 

She was liking the position she was in. Juniper’s eyes looked between either man beside her but reminded herself they had a train to rob before she did anything else. As the wagon rolled along the road, she pulled out her Schofield and oiled it, cleaning off any bits of dirt. Sean was talking up a big storm, making everyone one groan but she could only laugh to herself. 

Once the train tracks showed up, she was careful to holster her gun but keep it easy to get to. The outlaws disembarked and waited for Arthur to tell them what to do. Juniper shook out her hand, catching herself and stilling the motion as she craned her neck to look further down the tracks. She couldn’t see the train yet, but a jittery excitement was running through her limbs.

“Juniper...” Arthur began to tell her what to do.

“I should go with Sean.” She supplied, interrupting him. He paused a moment, considering her words. Sean though, gave a shout of protest. 

“Oi, I don’t need a babysitter.” He sounded truly offended. 

“Sean, I swear to god,” Juniper turned on her heel, ready to start arguing with him. 

“Alright you two, shut it.” Arthur managed to silence them without a low growl of his voice. “Juniper, go with Sean. Sean, do what she says.” He pointed at Sean like he was about to stab the man. His attention was suddenly pulled to the tracks he kept one foot on. “I’m gonna make sure it stops. Get in position.” They scattered into the bushes beside the tracks, Juniper crouching beside John.

She watched from the tree line as Arthur climbed up on top of the tank and settled into his stance. Sucking in a hard breath as a curl of arousal tightened in her gut as he gripped his rifle. 

“I have never in my life wanted to suck a man’s dick more than right now.” She whispered to herself with a throaty hiss. John jerked away from her like she’d slapped him. Juniper cast a glance his way, grinning. 

“Oh tell me you don’t want to break off a piece of that.” She joked, smiling at him. For a second it looked as if John was arguing with himself before he shook off her question and glared at her. 

“What _are_ you?” He snarled. She had a retort ready but the train was stopping and it was time to shut up. John nudged her, pointing to the bandana at her throat as he pulled his up. Charles was the first out, popping off a shot to down the conductor. Juniper tugged up her bandana before following close behind Sean as he ran towards the baggage car.

As she passed by the passenger car she could hear gun shots and screams as John and Arthur worked their way through the people inside. Sean was quick to jump onto the flatbed train car. After climbing up herself, she snaked a hand into his shirt and jerked him back. 

“Sean, don’t run ahead.” Juniper hissed at him. He got knocked in the head here, she knew, but she couldn’t remember exactly when. The door to the next car flew open and a man stepped in front of her. An ugly grin on his face was all she had time to register before he slammed the butt of his gun into her face. 

Light exploded behind her eyes as she tumbled backwards. A gunshot went off as she hit the ground and the man who’d hit her fell beside her. Sean slipped a hand behind her shoulder to help her sit up. Arthur glared at the both of them as he stepped over her to search the luggage car. 

“Thought you could see the future.” Sean laughed in her ear. 

“Well, _you_ didn’t get hit, did you?” She snarled back, holding her eye that was quickly swelling closed. Amazingly, Sean didn’t have a comeback to that.

“Can you stand?” He asked, his voice low enough to be a whisper. She was touched to hear the concern in his voice. With a nod she immediately regretted, Juniper dragged herself to her feet. 

“Alright, Miss Fortune Teller, what happens next?” Arthur asked, as he finished shoving stolen belongings into his satchel. Juniper leaned over the railing of the open car, straining to look into the woods nearby with her one good eye. 

“Some lawmen are going to show up, and it’s more than we can handle quickly. We should sneak out now, not fight them.” Arthur gave a nod, looking past her to John and Charles. With a quick motion of his hand the group slipped off the side of the train and called for their horses that had followed behind. Juniper’s head was pounding and she couldn’t see out of her left eye. The guard had caught her good. Beside her, on the side she couldn’t see well, Sean suddenly started talk and she had to swing her head around to see him.

“You okay, Junie?” 

“Just a black eye, it’ll be okay in a day or two.” Her mind rolled through the actual problems. Probably a mild concussion, crack orbital socket too. She wanted to shake her head to throw off the wooziness she felt but tightened her fist around the reins instead. That wouldn’t help anything. 

“Quit talking, you two.” Arthur hissed. “Let’s get!” He used his hand to herd the group down the road, away from the train. The pounding in her head was getting worse, but she assumed it’d get better once they got away from the train. Gritting her teeth she kicked Paul Revere to keep up with the others. The new horse shook her head a little, disliking the tension in the air. Not that Juniper could blame her, and she fought to keep herself calm so her horse would be calm. Her vision started to shake, the pounding worsened and she had to lean heavy on the saddle horn. 

“Junie?” Sean was still beside her. She waved off his concern, thankful when Arthur pulled the group to a stop. He glanced back over his shoulder at the road as if he expected someone to be following them. Unable to keep herself steady any longer, Juniper slid out of the saddle. Wrenching her bandana off in time to stumble off the road to vomit in the bushes. 

“Fuck!” John growled as Juniper heaved. A cool hand settled at the nape of her neck, pulling her hair away from her face. Charles kept his hand on her shoulder as she stood up, wiping at her mouth with the bandana. 

“Sorry.” She mumbled but Charles ignored her words, cradling her head in his hands and looking at her eyes. Well, the one that could open at least. 

“You got hit pretty hard.” He said as he gave her a long, examining look. 

“I’ll be fine. Just changed things, need a minute.” She huffed, spitting to try and ride the sour taste of vomit from her mouth. 

“Alright, June. Stay with Charles, Charles you got her?” Arthur asked. Charles gave a nod, keeping a hand on Juniper’s shoulder. 

“I’m fine.” She protested, but it was a weak protest. 

“Split up, take a few days before getting back to camp.” He ignored her and looked to the other men. Sean looked positively worried about her and it bothered her. She felt like a liability. There wasn’t much to be done about it. She was standing up straight now, and glaring at Arthur despite her swollen eye. He returned the glare before turning his horse away and riding off. John didn’t bother giving a farewell before he turned down the road. Sean though, Sean sat on Ennius watching Juniper with a look a guilt bleeding into his eyes. 

“Sean, I swear to god if you don’t stop looking like that I will give _you_ a black eye. Go!” She waved him off and Sean, in spite of himself, turned his horse away and rode off. It left Juniper standing beside Charles, feeling more grumpy than she should after a successful ride. As she stood there the pounding in her head slowly receded to a throb and she looked back to Charles. 

“You going to act like I can’t stand on my own for the rest of the night?” She asked, swinging her head around to look Paul Revere over. The mare butted her muzzle against the offered hand as Juniper ran her fingers through the mane. 

“For a minute there I thought you couldn’t. Has it been that bad before?” He asked, calm and even. Juniper shook her head and reeled a bit, stopping the motion quickly. 

“No. But I think, the more into the story I get, the more I change, the worse it’s going to get. So just,” She paused, not entirely sure what she asking for. “Don’t freak out over me or nothing.”

“I will try to refrain from...freaking out.” He said the phrase stilted but with a small huff of a laugh. “Do you think you can ride?”

“Of course I can ride.” She snapped. Paul Revere tossed her head at the heat in Juniper’s voice but stood still as she hauled herself into the saddle. “So, where you want to go?”

“Probably shouldn’t drink tonight.” Charles warned. 

“No,” Juniper conceded. “Shouldn’t sleep for a few hours either.” A heavy sigh made her shoulders sag as she waited for Charles to mount. “So no drinking, no sleeping. What the hell else is there to do without television?” It was an attempt at a joke but Charles only looked confused. 

“What’s television?” He asked.

“Don’t worry about it.” Juniper turned Paul Revere down the road and started at a walk. “Let’s rent a hotel room and fuck until we pass out.” She teased as Charles nudged Taima to catch up with her. He gave a laugh at her words.

“You said you couldn’t sleep for a few hours.” He argued back. 

“Were you planning on disappointing me?” She turned her head to look at his face. 

“No...”

“Then we should be fine.” Her laugh was too loud and she didn’t care. 

————-

A day and a half later, Charles and Juniper rode into camp. Her black eye was much better, she could actually see out of it. The swelling had gone down the next day and the aching throb in her head was gone by the time she woke up so all in all, Juniper counted it as a success. 

“So, what did we avoid that earned you such a headache?” Charles asked as their horses turned down the trail towards camp. 

“Not as much as you’d think.” She answered, waving at Javier as they passed him. “Sean got caught in the head and the law showed up for a nasty shootout.” Bulletface called out to her as they rode near the horses. Juniper slipped from Paul Revere, tossing the reins over the hitching post before wrapping her arms around the small Nakota’s neck. 

“Did you miss me, girl?” The horse huffed and paced a bit, pressing into Juniper’s chest and resting her head on her shoulder. Juniper found a good spot, just behind the ears, to scratch and Bulletface gave a grumble of satisfaction. “Good girl.” She cooed to her horse. 

“She’s been kind of testy since you rode out without her again.” Kieran said shyly from the other side of her horse. 

“Has she?” Juniper gave a small laugh. “The rotten creature. Not giving you too much trouble I hope.” 

“Oh, no Ma’am. Even if she’s grumpy she’s still a sweet horse.” He rubbed a hand down the scarred neck of the horse. 

“Glad to hear it.” Juniper untangled herself from her horse, who seemed reasonably satisfied with the greeting and turned her attention to the hay Kieran was offering. Leaving her horse in good hands, Juniper headed for the chuckwagon. Her stomach was rumbling and the smell wafting across camp was making her mouth water. 

“You’re looking a sight better.” Sean’s voice called out. Juniper glanced to her side to see him eating at the nearby table with Hosea reading a newspaper across from him. 

“I am capable of healing from a black eye, yes.” She smirked as she labeled out a bowl of stew. Joining the two at the table, she started wolfing down the food. “Turns our humans heal, even if they get busted in the head saving your ass.” Her teasing turned the tips of Sean’s ears red and made Hosea snort a little from behind the newspaper. 

“Well, I’m glad to see you’re better. Purple ain’t a good color on you.” Sean mumbled, suddenly flustered, before standing and walking off. 

“He was the quietest I’ve ever seen him while you were gone.” Hosea said, folding his newspaper and setting it on the table. 

“Aw, he’s just feeling guilty because I got the shiner and not him.” She tugged the paper over and leafed through it. The articles looked vaguely familiar, she hadn’t ever spent much time reading them when she played the game but now seemed like a good time to correct that. 

“Maybe I should get hit in the head more often, if it’ll shut him up.” Hosea smiled, shaking his head as he stood up. 

“I’ll take a mouthy Sean over an injured Juniper any day.” He patted her shoulder before walking off. Juniper gave a nod of her head before looking back at the paper. There was an article about the train robbery, to her surprise. Nestled in a bottom corner of the front page, type set small and squished together like old newspapers always did. She hadn’t expected for there to be that quick of a turn around on newspapers in the 1800’s but here it was. Her eyes skimmed along the article, sure it was probably different from the original, but she froze as she read one line. 

_“...despite a tip off to police, the robbers remain at large.”_

A tip off? Her head snapped around to look around the camp. Micah was nowhere to be seen. Looking back to the paper, her brain churned the information over and over. Micah wasn’t supposed to start snitching to the cops until after Guarma. Was he already snitching? Was that what changed? No, she corrected herself, she had only changed the outcome of the shootout not the lawmen showing up. Anger sizzled in her gut, propelling her to her feet and clutching the paper in her hand. She needed to talk to Arthur. As she stalked past John’s tent, Abigail came out, pulling at her arm to stop her. 

"Juniper," Abigail stopped her. "Have you seen Arthur?" She peered around Juniper, seeming anxious. Juniper followed her gaze to look around as well. She took a big breath and calmed herself down. Her anger could wait. Micah would be no less dead if she killed him tomorrow. 

"No, I was looking for him too, but I think he’s still out of camp. What's up?" Abigail sighed and looked back. 

"I just, I know all this moving around and all the trouble we've been in has been hard on Jack, and he loves Arthur and..."

"You wanted him to take Jack fishing." Juniper finished for her. Abigail nodded, a little exacerbated. "Well, hell. I'll take him fishing. Arthur probably won’t be back for a bit and I'd love to go do something fun with the kid." She shrugged, trying to hide any bit of anger in her. Abigail broke into a broad smile and Juniper felt her heart twinge a bit at how pretty it was. "I miss my own kid, it'd be nice to do it." 

"Well," Abigail waffled a bit, unsure.

"Come on, Abi. You know I’m right, Arthur always takes his sweet time getting back after a job!" She had to stop herself from begging and the small headache she was starting to get made her blink a couple of times. Abigail finally gave in. 

"Alright, just make sure he has fun, alright?" Juniper was already walking off to find Jack, waving dismissively at Abigail. She ducked into Arthur's tent briefly, digging through his trunk until she found his pole. Grinning to herself, she found Jack playing with a few carved toys beside a rock. 

"Hey, wanna go fishing?" She asked, crouching next to him while balancing the fishing pole on her shoulder. He had such a sweet little face and wasn't really much bigger than her own daughter. His face was eager when he looked up at her, already excited. 

"Really, Auntie Juniper?" Dirt flew as he scrambled to his feet, his toys forgotten in the grass. 

"Sure! Go get your pole. I'll let you hold the reins." She grinned as he ran off, digging through a small bag in his tent. Bulletface snorted when she walked up, already saddled and groomed as well as she could be. Her eyes scanned around until she saw Kieran tending to another horse over by the scout campfire. He looked away when she finally caught sight of him, making her smirk but her attention was pulled away as Jack came running back. Picking him up, she sat him in the saddle and climbed up behind him. 

"Auntie Juniper," His voice was small as they left camp. She gave a small wave to Bill as they rode out of the thicket. "Things aren't going well, are they?" She nearly choked on her own spit at his question. She knew he was a smart kid, but she hadn't taken him for an observant one, not considering his father. For a split she considered lying to him.

"Uh, yeah kid." A heavy sigh made her shoulders sag. "Things ain't great. But try not to worry too much, you've got a lot of people who are going to make sure _you're_ okay."

"And you're a fortune teller!" He said excitedly, making her laugh. 

"Yeah, they've got me, right? I'm not letting anything bad happen." His trust in her was heartwarming. The river loomed close and Juniper turned to follow it for a bit until the soft bank she was looking for showed itself. They dismounted and instead of actually fishing, Juniper sat with him and show him how to make a nice flower crown. 

"You've got to fold the stems around each other like this," She showed him, finishing up the ends and dropping it on his head. His hand reached up to rub against the petals of the yarrow. 

"This looks amazing!" He said in awe. An itch at the back of her head made Juniper look around, a feel of unease crept into her shoulders and she was quickly standing up to dust off her pants and whistle for Bulletface.

"Hey, how about you ride Bulletface back to camp?" She suggested. The young boy looked up at her in worry, it was a sudden suggestion and she was letting her own concern leak out. 

"Why?" He asked, his tiny fists clutching tight to his flower crown. She sat Jack on Bulletface, tying the reins up to the saddle horn so they wouldn’t drag. He looked at her, still a little worried. Patting his leg softly, Juniper smiled up at him. 

“Don’t worry too much, okay. Bulletface will take you right back to camp.” Pulling the reins, she turned the horse towards camp. 

“But Aunty Juniper, why aren't you coming?” He whined. There was a tinge of fear in his voice. Juniper took his little hand, giving it a squeeze. 

“Aw, Jack I want to but I’ve just got to talk to someone. They’ll be along in a bit and it’ll be real boring grown up talk, so you should just head back. Bulletface will get you there real quick. Think how nice it will be, riding on your own." She gave him an encouraging smile, patting his knee. "If anyone asks who I’m talking to, tell them Pinkertons. Tell them they might like to talk to them too.” He didn’t seem satisfied with the answer but accepted it. She didn’t wait for him to ask anymore questions but slapped her horses flanks. Bulletface snorted and took off at an easy lope, vanishing as Jack held on tightly to the saddle. 

Juniper sighed as the little boy vanished along the path, turning back to look out over the river. Picking up the rod she had _borrowed_ from Arthur, she cast out her line. There weren't any fish biting, but it was to steady her nerves more than anything. Taking slow breaths, Juniper focused on the sound of the rushing water, almost missing the sound of approaching horses over it. Sucking in a breath, she turned to look at the men dismounting.

“You seem a bit lonely out here, all alone.” The first man, Agent Milton, said. Juniper struggled to keep her face calm. “Don’t believe we’ve met, I’m Agent Milton, this is my associate, Agent Ross.” Juniper’s eyes lingered on the man behind him, a flash of anger passed her face briefly before she looked back to Milton. He was watching her closely when their eyes met.

“It seems there’s been some rough types around here lately, wonder if you’d seen any?” His voice was careful, measured. He was already on to her. Juniper’s hand tightened around the fishing pole.

“It’s a wild country, most types are rough types.” She argued. Agent Ross had a rifle leveled at her, around Agent Milton. 

“Yes, I suppose they are.” Agent Milton eyed her, looking over his shoulder to Ross before obviously deciding something. “I think you should come with us.”

“I think any lady would be a fool to take you up on that offer.” She sneered, her hand settling firm around the grip of her pistol. 

“It wasn’t an offer.” He narrowed his eyes.

"I don’t really have to go with you anywhere, you ain’t the cops.” Juniper responded. Agent Milton raised an eyebrow, pulling his gun quick. He hadn’t telegraphed it at all and it was aimed at the ground in front of Juniper before she realized he’d moved.

"Don't think anyone's going to really question what we do, as long as we get results.” He smirked at her. Her fist itched to slam that smug smile off his face but there was a gun in the way. “Now, unless you want to paint this riverbank red, maybe you answer our questions and then we don't have to bring you in.” He pulled the hammer back with a loud click, leaving Juniper no choice. She swallowed, her eyes darting between the two men.

“You know, I’m a fortune teller.” Juniper said as she took a deep breath. Wouldn't be very smart to lose her temper now.

“Then you’ll be able to answer all our questions, won’t you?” Agent Milton sneered. 

“Fair enough. Do you want to know how you die, Agent Ross?” She looked around Milton to stare the younger agent down. Once Ross looked away, Juniper grinned.

“Not particularly.” Ross answered, annoyed. 

“You die an old man, on a fishing trip with your brother. Beautiful country around you. Gunned down by the son of a man you murder. He kills your brother and wife too.” She said, a sing song tone to her voice. Ross had obviously not been expecting that answer. Agent Milton watched her his eyes narrow and angry on Juniper. 

“No more bullshit.” He growled at Juniper. “Where is Van der Linde?” He asked, waiting for her to answer. Juniper shook her head a bit. 

“Van der what? I don’t even speak Dutch.” She couldn’t help the grin on her face, nervous and giddy. 

“Where’s the gang’s hideout?” He asked, anger rising in his voice. 

“Wouldn’t tell you even if I knew.” She asserted. “Wouldn’t piss on you if you were on fire. Not a one of you. Your whole agency is made up of strikebreaking union busters who think they’re better than everyone else. Real scum of the earth.” The gun went off and a white hot pain in her foot made Juniper cry out and stumble backwards, falling onto her ass in the shallows of the river.

"What the _fuck_?!" She screeched, grabbing for her foot. It throbbed in her hands, the pain so sharp and fresh it was almost numb. Almost. "You shot my _foot_?"

“A parting gift.” He straightened his tie after holstering his gun. Juniper gasped for air around the pain in her foot. At least she wouldn't die from it, probably. Milton gave a hand wave to Ross and the two mounted up their horses. "You let those degenerates know we're coming for them. Tell them we had fun burying that Mac Calendar too." That same smirk looked down at her as she tried to bite down on the pain. With a cluck to his horse, the two rode off and Juniper watched them go until they were out of sight.

She’d hand it to him. He knew how to make a person hurt. Now she gave a shaky sigh, trying to gauge if she could hobble back to camp on a bleeding foot. Pulling off her boot made her hiss, but she had to know how bad the damage was. He'd shot the outside of her left foot, into the toe of the boot. The sock was harder to get off than the boot, blood already sticking it to her skin, but it looked like he'd shot off her two smallest toes. 

"That fucking bastard." Juniper grimaced as she tried to wrap the gore with the stained sock, anything to stop the bleeding. Once she was satisfied she'd done as well as could be expected, she started using her good foot to push herself out of the water. Her clothes were soaked from landing in the river and it wasn't exactly warm water flowing off the snowmelt in the mountains. 

Whether she started shivering from the pain in her foot or the ice water, it was hard to tell. The thought occurred to her that they might have misinterpreted the message she sent back with Jack and think she was willingly talking to the Pinkertons. That would certainly make things harder. Hell, losing two toes wouldn't make anything easier. And a ruined boot on top of that. Pushing herself up on a nearby rock to sit, Juniper let a heavy sigh out as she weighed her options. 

Tears were welling up and she couldn’t stop them entirely. Swallowing back the sobs, she wiped her eyes and took deep breaths. It could have gone worse, she tried to remind herself. Things were obviously unpredictable once she started messing with the plot and she was just going to have to deal with the changes as they came up. 

"I started this, I'm going to finish it." She said to herself. "Not going to let a little thing like losing two little piggies stop me." Gingerly, she tried to put weight on her foot and instantly realized that was a bad idea. Sharp, red hot pain stabbed up from her foot and made her give a small cry. Fighting to keep her breathing even, she wiped away the remains of tears on her cheek. 

“Juniper!” Someone was calling her name. She looked up to see Javier. "What are you doing out here, _Lindura_?"

“Thought I'd take a walk! Nice to see a friendly face.” Juniper yelled back. Some amount of relief was visible in Javier as she spoke. He rode Boaz up beside her, looking down at the bloody sock wrapped around her foot.

"Jack said you were talking to some friends?" He asked, careful in his wording. His eyes scanned the nearby area.

"Yeah, they uh..." She looked down at her foot. "We had a disagreement." 

"I can see that. Need a ride?" His eyes moved up to her face as she looked away, wiping at her nose a bit.

"Yeah, I could use a ride. Thanks." Blinking to clear her eyes, she gave a sigh and heaved herself up onto her good foot. 

"They get you that bad?" Javier asked, holding out a hand for her grab.

"I can no longer count to twenty." She said, grabbing his forearm and dragging herself up behind him. It was hard enough getting up on the horse's back, Juniper shifted over to hold on to Javier and ride side saddle. "Best I'll be able to muster is eighteen." 

"Shit, June. You must have pissed them off." He laughed, a chuckle under his breath. Pulling on the reins, he turned the horse back towards camp. 

"I might have said I wouldn't piss on him if he was on fire." Hearing herself say it made her realize how harsh it was. Javier burst into loud peals of laughter. 

" _Por Dios_ , of course you did." He shook his head, glancing over his shoulder at her. "You okay?"

"Never lost a body part before. Kinda hurts. Need a new boot now too." It was more of a grumble than anything else, she was still feeling upset about it. 

"I'm sure we can get you some new boots, June. What all did they ask?" Javier patted her hand that was gripping his blue coat. It was a comforting gesture that she appreciated . 

"Where the gang was. They know we're around but not exactly where. I should speak to Dutch about this." She let herself rest against his back, sullen and dejected. He did her the favor of not asking any more questions. Bill gave a confused waved as they rode back into camp and Javier dismounted. Juniper scowled down at her foot then looked up to see Javier holding his arms out expectantly.

"You are _not_ carrying me bridal style across camp." She almost snorted with a laugh. Javier dropped his arms, feigning sadness. 

"Why not?" He smirked up at her. 

"I will lose what little respect these idiots have for me. I'll hobble." She moved to slide down from Boaz only for Javier to turn around and offer her his back, slapping it once. 

"Come on, you can't walk on that." He argued, grinning over his shoulder. She wanted to protest but he was right, even without weight on it, it throbbed. Sighing in resignation, Juniper pushed herself off Boaz. Javier gingerly pulled her legs around his waist, careful of her mangled foot, and let her drop her weight onto his back. She laughed a bit, wrapping her arms around his shoulders as he started walking. Abigail began marching towards them, a scowl set on her face, only pausing when she was close enough to see Juniper's foot dripping blood onto the grass.

"Juniper..." Her scowl twisted into confusion and she stopped in her tracks. "Well, I was going to yell at you for sending my poor child to ride back on his own..." Her voice trailed off, anger slowly dissapaiting. 

"Sorry, Abi. The alternative would have been worse and I knew Bulletface would take care of him." She called out. Javier wasn't stopping, carrying her straight to Dutch's tent. 

"I'll get Miss Grimshaw." Abigail said, rushing off.

"Dutch!" Javier called out, drawing attention as he stepped into the tent. "Got a delivery for you!" He almost laughed and Juniper gave a weak smack to his shoulder, only making him laugh harder. Dutch looked like he was about to drop his cigar. He hurriedly moved a chair behind Javier, watching as Juniper was dropped into it. She gave a hard hiss as her foot was bumped a little too hard. 

"What the hell happened?" Dutch was staring at her foot and she felt a little bad to be bleeding in his tent.

"I ran into Pinkertons down by the river." Wincing again, biting back a cry as Javier lifted her injured foot to rest it in a second chair he'd managed to find. 

"What'd you tell them?" Dutch asked. "No one would blame you, Juniper but we need to know what they know." She scoffed. He leaned over, a hand resting lightly on her shoulder, waiting expectantly with an understanding smile on his face. 

"Dutch, I'm surprised at you. You should know by now I'm incapable of anything except unpleasant humor and insults." She shifted around in her chair and scowl at him."I didn't tell them shit." A smug smile spread across her face before she sat back. Dutch raised an eyebrow and looked over at Hosea. The older man was walking over, looking concerned as usual. "You think they'd shoot off my toes if I told them anything?" 

"No, I suppose not." Dutch leaned back, chewing on his cigar for a minute. Miss Grimshaw was nearly running across the yard without seeming to actually change her pace. Juniper marveled at how in worried she looked despite having to be at least a _little_ worried. 

"Dutch!" Her voice was already angry. Dutch cringed away. "Are you really questioning her while her foot is bleeding everywhere?" Even Juniper flinched away from the ire in the old woman's voice. "Juniper, are you really going to just sit there?"

"Would you prefer I get up and start dancing?" She asked, motioning at her foot. "And please god let me get drunk before you touch my damn foot." Javier snickered but quickly fled under the glare of Miss Grimshaw. The old woman sighed, crossing her arms.

"Hosea, would you be so kind as to get Miss Juniper a bottle of whiskey." She said, lips tight. Juniper pressed her palms together in a mock prayer. 

"Thank you." A bottle was pressed into her hand, choking down a heavy gulp and relishing the burn, she let out a heavy sigh. "One of these days, I'll learn to keep my mouth shut." She laughed.

"No, you won't." Miss Grimshaw corrected her without looking up from Juniper’s foot. 

"Yeah, you’re probably right.” She laughed harder. Miss Grimshaw took the laughter as her cue to start working on her foot. The ruined sock was sticking to her foot and she flinched away as it was removed. It was hard to see, just bloody gore and Juniper had to turn her face and not look at it. 

"Well, it's a clean job." Miss Grimshaw sighed. "There's no toes to save, I'm afraid." She sounded genuinely sorry and Juniper shrugged, taking another deep pull off the bottle without looking. 

"It'll heal faster that way anyways." A heavy sigh made her shoulders sag as the warm burning spread through her chest. "Who needs toes, right?"

“Well, you still have most of them. Shouldn’t be too bad.” Miss Grimshaw’s voice softened a bit as she cleaned the bloody foot. Abigail was walking up, holding a crate of supplies. Behind her, Strauss was following closely.

“Miss Juniper, I bring you gifts.” His voice called out. She hadn’t spoken to him hardly at all, choosing to avoid him as much as she could. Knowing how the game ended for him made it hard for her to hate him entirely but still, looking at him stung sometimes. Stung a lot less after she had convinced Arthur to stop collecting debts though. 

“Herr Strauss, _meine Lieblingshalsabschneider, was haben Sie für mich?”_ The words tumbled out from her and Strauss jerked back as if she shot him. Abigail glanced between the two, smirking as she set the crate beside Miss Grimshaw. 

“How can you speak German?” He asked, incredulous.

“Duolingo!” She cackled, loose with her laughter thanks to the liquor working its way through her veins. It wasn’t an answer anyone understood but that didn’t seem to matter. Her friends were getting quick to brush of Juniper’s quirks. 

“I’ve brought you some morphine. Miss Roberts said you might be in need of it.” 

“ _Sehr reizend von Ihnen._ You can afford to spare it?” Her words were sharper than necessary and she shook her head. “Sorry, forgive me. The liquor’s gone to my brain and I’ve recently lost my two favorite toes.” She shook the bottle in her hand, wincing with a hiss as Miss Grimshaw started sewing the ragged skin on her foot up. 

“Jesus Christ, that hurts.” She wanted to pull away from the pain but held herself still, twisting her torso away but keeping her foot in place. 

“What, you’ve never had stitches before?” Miss Grimshaw chided her. 

“Not without anesthesia.” Juniper grumbled under her breath. A string of curses was pulled out of her mouth as Miss Grimshaw continued her work. Nearly dropping the bottle of liquor, Juniper set it down and gripped the edges of her chair white knuckled. 

“You’ve given birth,” Abigail reminded her with a hand on her shoulder. 

“Yeah, and I got a baby out of it. You seeing an infant coming out of my foot anytime soon?” She squealed, fighting to keep her foot still for Miss Grimshaw. 

“I swear, you’re a bigger baby than the men.” Miss Grimshaw was unimpressed. “I’m almost done, it’s only five stitches.” She tugged the horsehair tight, making Juniper gasp, before cutting it short. “Done, you wimp. Get her to bed, I don’t think Arthur will mind her borrowing his cot while he’s out of camp. Stay off the foot, Juniper.”

“Oh, don’t worry, Devil Woman. I will.” Juniper was sweating as Miss Grimshaw walked off, glad it was down with. Her foot was throbbing and she quickly grabbed up the liquor bottle again and took a long pull. 

“Herr Strauss, _Dankeschön_ but I think I’m just gonna black out instead.” She wiggled her bottle at him, slowly intending as her the throbbing in her foot faded. The older man watched her for a minute before nodding and walking off. If she was less drunk she might feel bad for being curt with him. 

“You going to make it, Juniper?” Dutch asked, looking down at her. Juniper tipped her head back against the chair and the world spun. She giggled. 

“I think she’s feeling fine now.” Hosea said, glancing to Dutch. Juniper’s eyes, blurry, looked past Dutch to Molly standing with her back to the crowd on the other side of the tent. 

“Molly!” She called out. The redhead startled, and turned around looking scared and confused at Juniper’s attention. “You are just the prettiest! Come over here, what are you doing over there?” Juniper was loud, unable to control her volume. 

“Don’t think I’m going to be taking orders from the likes of you, Miss.” Molly snapped, pulling her shawl tighter around her. 

“Aw, don’t be sore at me. I wasn’t trying to be mean.” Juniper cooed, frowning. “How do you get your hair so perfect, anyways? I couldn’t get a single curl in my hair if I made a blood sacrifice. Yours always looks so beautiful.” Despite her harsh words, Molly still preened a little, stepping closer to the crowd around Juniper. “All the women’s hair is amazing. Mary Beth has those wonderful ringlets. How? Just, how? Hairspray doesn’t exist yet, and that hair color!” She scoffed, pointing at Molly’s hair. “Unbelievable!” Dutch started laughing, waving his arm at Javier. 

“Get her out of here before she steals my woman.” He turned, slipping an arm around Molly’s waist and whispering something that made the woman giggle. 

“That’s right! I’m Ms. Steal Your Girl!” 

"Alright, that’s enough, _corazón_. Let's get you to bed." Javier laughed as he snaked his arms across her back and under her knees. Juniper let him pick her up, slipping an arm across his shoulders, clutching the nearly empty bottle of whiskey in her other hand.

"I don't wanna." She said, petulant and sullen. The throbbing in her foot was minimal now, but still there. He hefted her up and began carrying her towards Arthur’s tent

“What would you prefer? Hmm? A short run though the woods?” Jokingly, he turned to walk towards the trees. Juniper laughed then pulled herself to his ear. 

“I can think of something I want to do in the woods, and it ain’t short.” She whispered, lick along the edge of his lobe. A shudder ran down Javier’s spine and he paused. 

“ _Mi amor_ , you’re drunk.” He groaned, forcing himself to head towards the tent again. “And injured.”

“The best sex I've had has always been drunk sex.” She argued. Tossing the empty whiskey bottle away from her, Juniper unbuttoned the first few buttons of his shirt. Her hand sliding across his chest, letting her fingers trace across a hardening nipple. “Come on, Javi, make me feel good.” Her fingers dug into the sensitive skin along the side of his ribs, making him hiss. “Take care of me.” She cooed in his ear. 

“Ay, later.” He quickly set her down on the cot only for Juniper to pull him on top of her. He laughed, unlacing her fingers from his shirt and kissing her forehead. Holding her roaming hands down, Javier pulled a blanket up over her. “You rest up and I’ll take you somewhere nice in a couple of days.”

“Oh, you’re no fun.” Juniper pouted but she was already falling asleep. He said something else but she didn’t catch it, the world was fading out quick.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those that don’t read my other stuff, I now have a twitter you can follow if you want to see any updates or stuff related to my writing. Find me @LamourScarlett 
> 
> Other note: NaNoWriMo is starting Friday, so I will probably be missing for a while (again) as I try to work on that. I’m not gone forever, just trying something else for a little while.


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